Skinny houses have a wider appeal than their footprint would suggest. With cities becoming denser, and land becoming rare and expensive, architects are increasingly challenged to design in urban infill spaces previously overlooked. Although designing within these unusual parameters can be difficult, they often require an individual, sensitive response, which can often lead to innovative, playful, even inspiring results. With that in mind, here are 22 houses with a narrow footprint, and a broad impact.
The Keret House – Jakub Szczesny

© Polish Modern Art Foundation – Bartek Warzecha
House in Nada – FujiwaraMuro Architects

© Toshiyuki Yano
skinnySCAR – Gwendolyn Huisman and Marijn Boterman

Courtesy of Gwendolyn Huisman and Marijn Boterman
Blemen House – Blemen Architects

© Norihito Yamauchi
The White Snake – Space4architecture

© Beatrice Pediconi
The Junsei House – Suyama Peterson Deguchi

© Charlie Schuck
Surry Hills House – Benn & Penna Architecture

© Tom Ferguson
Les Tiennes Marcel – Mohamed Omaïs & Olivia Gomes architects
House H – HAO Design

© Hey!Cheese
Stacking green – Vo Trong Nghia Architects

© Hiroyuki Oki
Scenario’s House – Scenario Architecture

© Matt Clayton
Grangegorman Residence – ODOS architects

Courtesy of ODOS architects
7×18 House – AHL architects associates

© Hung Dao
Grown House – FHHH FRIENDS

© Kyung Roh
Lucky Drops – Atelier Tekuto

© Makoto Yoshida
Two Homes in Jeongwang-dong – Maasarchitecture

© Namsun Lee
The Acute House – OOF! architecture

© Nic Granleese
Saigon House – a21studio

© Quang Tran
House for Pottery Festival – Office for Environment Architecture

© Yuko Tada
Vertical Loft – Shift Architecture Urbanism

© Rene de Wit
Islington Maisonette – Larissa Johnston Architects

© Rory Gardiner
House of 33 Years – ASSISTANT

© Shinkenchiku-sha