Models Laura and Kiko Mizuhara appeared at the press conference for the accommodation booking platform "Airbnb Japan" held in Tokyo on June 3. Mizuhara said that she has visited Laura's home in Los Angeles many times, and commented, "It has a really lovely minimalist design, and the furniture is in calm colors, but there's a Zen feel to it."
Airbnb has announced that it will collaborate with Laura and Mizuhara to start the "Akiya Design Project," a project to repair vacant old houses and use them as accommodation. Airbnb users can book and stay in old houses that have been creatively supervised by the two.
When Laura received the offer, she said, "I was incredibly happy, like, wow! At the time, I was just thinking about whether there were any wonderful Japanese houses or old houses that I wanted to design. It was only by traveling abroad that I became even more aware of the beauty, coolness and charm of Japanese houses. When I heard about this project, I was delighted to be involved and thought it would be great to spread the beauty of Japanese houses."
Mizuhara also said, "It's something I've always wanted to do." She continued, "I've been considering buying an old house personally, so it was something I wanted to do. Old houses have many charms, but they have a beauty, including the design, woodwork and timber, that may never be created in Japan again. I was just excited to be involved in it."
The project aims to contribute to the revitalization of traditional houses such as old houses, the vacant house problem, regional revitalization, and decentralized publishing by revitalizing traditional houses with the cooperation of the National Old House Revitalization Association. Brian Chesky, co-founder and CEO of Airbnb, also appeared at the presentation.
