{"id":488411,"date":"2026-11-06T20:44:12","date_gmt":"2026-11-06T20:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/488411\/"},"modified":"2026-11-06T20:44:12","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T20:44:12","slug":"this-photographers-austin-texas-home-looks-like-its-in-japan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/488411\/","title":{"rendered":"This Photographer\u2019s Austin, Texas Home Looks Like It\u2019s In Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Entering Michael Magers\u2019<\/a>s Austin, Texas home is like walking through a Richard Serra sculpture. Two intersecting, curved concrete walls disguise the first steel door. On the other side? A courtyard that looks straight out of Japan. Below the soaring oak trees are big boulders, and, around the edges, fencing that Magers charred himself in the traditional Yakisugi method. A one-hundred-year-old Japanese katana hilt, adorned with a dragon and cherry blossom, is welded into the handle of the front door. You know you\u2019re only two minutes from the city\u2019s major retail street, and yet you feel thousands of miles away.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI joke it\u2019s got Texas ryokan vibes. It\u2019s Donald Judd meets Kyoto with a side of Copenhagen,\u201d says Magers. Tying his worldly inspirations together is craftsmanship, a theme that\u2019s played out in Magers\u2019s work. The documentary photographer<\/a> traveled the globe covering culinary traditions before he started capturing crafts of all kinds, from tattooing to swordsmithing. More recently, he added winemaker and record store co-owner to his resum\u00e9. Obi<\/a>, the hybrid shop-and-gallery space he founded with record collector and LatinWorks founder Sergio Alcocer, opened its doors this month.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"modernLandscape design by John Garrett Design<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Magers is so fascinated by the making of things that he has a Substack<\/a> dedicated to interviewing all types of creatives, from the Taiwan-Lantern<\/a> designers to Black Pumas guitarist Adrian Quesada. So, naturally, his home is filled with storied (and predominantly handmade) objects. \u201cI like to look at a tea bowl that\u2019s one hundred years old when I make my matcha and think, how many bowls of matcha have been made in this thing?\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The place needed a dose of history\u2014it was basically brand-new when he bought it a few years ago. \u201cIt was a little cookie-cutter for Austin,\u201d recalls interior designer Alex Boudreau<\/a>, who had helped Magers out with his previous townhouse. Her task this time was to inject the small, two-bedroom home with personality and originality. Alongside Matthew Helveston of Woodeye Construction<\/a>, they started by finessing the bones, turning squared-off thresholds into smooth 45-degree archways.<\/p>\n

\"arch\u00a0Photograph (left) by Sophie Bramly<\/a>; Artwork (right), Stephen Antonakos.<\/a> <\/p>\n

The house became a laboratory of sorts; the mudroom one of his experiments. Framing two sides of the small space in 3-by-6-inch glass bricks, Magers was inspired by traditional Japanese genkans (or entryways) where the intention is to shed the things you\u2019ve carried with you from the day\u2014emotionally, physically, mentally. \u201cMike came to me with all these thoughts and ideas. My role was to absorb everything he said, organize it, and layer his collections,\u201d says Boudreau.<\/p>\n

\"blueMagers covered his Normann Copenhagen<\/a> dining benches in antique boro fabric he sourced on a trip to Japan. His ceramics collection in the kitchen spans works by Japanese artists, from Kimura Moriyasu to Kawai Kanjiro. | Wall color, Abingdon Putty by Benjamin Moore<\/a>; Ceiling stain, Paris Satin Wood Oil by Linolie & Pigment<\/a>; Vintage pendant, 1stDibs<\/a>; Credenza, USM<\/a>; Coffee table by Mira Nakashima<\/a>; Sofa, Gio Ponti<\/a>; Floor lamp, Louis Poulsen<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Another \u201caha\u201d moment that came to him around 4 a.m.: Paneling the living room ceiling in indigo blue-stained plywood. \u201cIt was about, how can we create something that brings warmth and texture but can also be done economically?\u201d shares Magers. The boards were light enough to be nailed directly into the sheetrock. But before they were professionally installed, Magers stained the budget-friendly wood himself using Danish brand Linolie & Pigment\u2019s satin wood oil. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\"woodThe secret to making industrial concrete floors feel warm: \u201cthe right amount of color,\u201d says Boudreau. The designer chose a light green paint from Benjamin Moore<\/a> for the walls to combat the sea of black, white, and gray. \u201cIt allowed a background for his ceramics, art books, and Moroccan rugs without competing,\u201d she says.\u00a0| Cabinets, Reform<\/a>; Range, Wolf<\/a>; Refrigerator, Bosch<\/a>.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

For the kitchen cabinetry, Boudreau and Magers originally looked at custom stainless steel, but given the cost and fabrication logistics, they pivoted to Reform\u2019s Reflect series<\/a>. Magers burned and stained the live-edge wood shelves himself so he could display his collection of ceramics. \u201cEverything in the space, whether it\u2019s beautiful or not, is meant to be functional. Nothing is purely decorative,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\"musicIn Magers\u2019s queue currently: Lots of jazz, some new records a friend picked up for him in Benin, and a Japanese pressing of Upstairs at Eric\u2019s from synth-pop duo Yazoo. | Custom shelf designed by Alex Boudreau Studio<\/a> and made by Shota Yamaguchi<\/a>; Shelf stain, Linolie<\/a>; Lamp, Noguchi<\/a>; Pendant, Taiwan-Lantern<\/a>; Custom sofa designed by Alex Boudreau Studio<\/a> covered in Rose Uniacke<\/a> fabric; Speakers, DeVore Fidelity<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"cozyMagers dreamt up the coffee table, tasking Shota Yamaguchi<\/a> with building wood legs and Nicholas Woodall<\/a> of Spun Gold with hammering the aluminum top. Underneath the small window, he hung a series of Saul Leiter photos he scored through a print house in Kyoto that specializes in labor-intensive collotype printing. \u201cIt takes a photo and makes it almost like a painting. It\u2019s insane how much work goes into it,\u201d shares Magers.\u00a0| Curtain fabric, Sandra Jordan<\/a>; Rug, Nordic Knots<\/a>; Saul Leiter photos via Benrido.<\/a> <\/p>\n

For the more complicated woodwork, he relied on trusted fine furniture maker and carpenter Shota Yamaguchi<\/a>. In the nearby listening room (formerly a bedroom), a custom storage unit designed by Boudreau and built by Yamaguchi out of Douglas fir ply houses heaps of vinyl, books, and a restored Garrard 401 turntable. The walls and ceiling are swathed in a subtle limewash treatment, while the windows are shrouded in an alpaca sheer check print\u2014 \u201cone of my all-time favorite fabrics,\u201d admits Boudreau.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Much like the exterior, the downstairs bathroom is the perfect blend of Texan and Japanese influences. The boxy, unpainted vanity, also made out of Douglas fir plywood, was a little nod to artist Donald Judd; the wood trim on the walls evoke shoji screens. There was nothing particularly fancy about the remodel: the silk wall sconce is an old CB2 find, the sink is stainless steel, and the tub skirt is made out of plywood. Still, the bathroom feels like a zen retreat. While a space for guests, it\u2019s also where Magers rinses off after using his sauna and cold plunge outside. \u201cIt reminds me of being in a cool hotel,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"stainedThe checkered throw on the bed is an original first class blanket from Braniff Airlines designed by Alexander Girard. Magers got it from his mom who was a flight attendant in the 1960s and \u201970s.\u00a0| Closet stain colors, Hanoi, Paris, Nordkap, and Rom by Linolie & Pigment<\/a>; Baltic birch paneling by Erik Segovia and Jose Ramirez Chavez; Ceiling pendant, \u00a0Noguchi<\/a>; Ceiling lights, Commune Design for Remains<\/a>; Photograph by Robert Mapplethorpe.<\/a> <\/p>\n

\"darkMagers burned the vanity wood using the traditional shou sugi ban (or charred wood) technique. Yamaguchi stained and cut the doors. Another tedious process? The tile installer laid the 2-by-2 inch zellige tiles in the shower one by one to achieve an offset brick pattern.\u00a0| Sconces, Orange Product Design<\/a>; Shower tile, Zia Tile<\/a>. <\/p>\n

After wrapping up a mini spa session, Magers will head back outdoors and tend to the plants. As night falls, lanterns light up the path that winds between the Japanese maple trees, and for a moment, \u201cit feels like you\u2019re in a different world,\u201d Magers says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lydia Geisel has been on the editorial team at Domino since 2017. Today, she writes and edits home and renovation stories, including house tours, before and afters, and DIYs, and leads our design news coverage. She lives in New York City.<\/p>\n

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