Chinese buildings pencil drawings step by step. Japanese-style houses

There is, however, exactly one thing that certainly did not come to Japan from nowhere, and which, apparently, will not go anywhere. This tradition stands and holds the Japanese as roots. The property. , an amazing building in which everything is completely different from anywhere else.

There is such a place - open museum of Japanese houses in Kawasaki... Some inscriptions are worth something. They will come up with the same. You can't draw. Except for a pencil and charcoal, for some reason. AND toilet traditional japanese worth it.

And you can't use it either. They say it is an exhibit. And so I wanted. It's a shame.

In general, no other people except the Japanese came up with the idea of \u200b\u200bsleeping, eating, sitting and living at home right on the floor, without furniture. Even the most modern fashionable and expensive skyscrapers of Tokyo only from the outside they look like western buildings. Inside each apartment there is always at least one bedroom, where rice mats are laid on top of concrete, and there they sleep right on the floor, as before, because the Japanese are comfortable this way. I'm already comfortable too. Well these beds. You can fall from them in a dream!

In addition to the floor, you also need a roof. Amazing fluffy japanese roofs are also made of straw... There are a lot of layers in them so that there is less leakage. When all the straw has been installed, a special hairdresser crawls along the roofs with scissors and makes the house a fashionable hairstyle. Each region of Japan has its own traditions regarding the fashion for home hairstyles. In the most fashionable houses, the gardener planted flowers right on the roof. Straw quickly rot from rains, compost is formed, grass and flowers grow well. Only sometimes you have to remember to climb on the roof and pull the weeds from it. That is, weeds are, of course, a concern in the summer. Clearing the roof of snow is a concern in winter, otherwise the roof risks collapsing. In the snowy regions of Japan, a window was still made on the roof - it worked as a winter exit, when the rest of the house was already covered with snow.

When the roof is broken or decayed - write wasted. A friend recently rented a new apartment for herself somewhere in Chiba, on the first floor. Because the second floor of the house is already so leaky that it is scary to go there, let alone move. So the second floor is empty. And there, among the puddles, a family of tanuki (raccoon dogs) settled. An acquaintance called 911, but the rescuers were afraid to go to the second floor. They said that they would then call the Ministry of Emergencies to clean the tanuki. But the owner of the house forgave the payment for May, since such a tangible thing.

The best part of the house is the sauna. The Japanese loved to wash. Japanese bathroom - a large basin with water, and firewood under it. In the bath I had to cook myself, throwing up firewood. Taking a bath in such a traditional bath is dangerous. A small wooden stool was placed at the bottom of the basin to sit on. After all, if a leg or butt jumps off the stool, they will touch the bottom of the pelvis, which is hot on an open fire: sometimes you wash yourself, and sometimes you burn yourself. But such a bath used to be an expensive pleasure. Usually, only one house in the village had a bath, and the owner let all the residents take turns to wash after his family. In the same water. And now, in traditional mensuku hotels, where there is already running water and even sometimes hot water, the owner fills the bath with hot water once a day and covers it with a wooden lid so that the water cools down more slowly, then all the guests take turns to wash in this bath. The main thing is not to be the last.

Not only the bath, but also the kitchen and the stove - everything is completely different thinking. Even the rice pantry is an amazing structure on 8m piles with slippery steel ends. According to the idea, a mouse should slide and fall from a height on them. What a samurai deceit!

This is the house that Tanaka-san built
And this is rice hidden for the winter,
Hangs in the pantry on high piles,

And this is a fluffy gray mouse
Which climbs on the piles where the rice
Which hangs high in the pantry,
In the house that Tanaka-san built.
And this is a slippery and sharp flooring,
Which the owner nailed to the piles,
From which the gray mouse falls,
Who climbed into the pantry where there is rice,
In the house that Tanaka-san built.

Hello dear readers - seekers of knowledge and truth!

Japan is like a completely different world for Europeans. The life and life of the Japanese are so unusual for us that, of course, it is interesting for us to get to know this country better and learn about its traditions and culture. And today we will open the veil of secrecy and look into the Japanese house.

We invite you to learn about how the traditional Japanese housing is arranged inside and out, what unusual pieces of furniture and household items are called, and compare how people lived in antiquity and in modern times.

Houses in the past

Types of dwellings

Traditional Japanese houses are called minka, which means "housing for people." They were inhabited by ordinary people who did not belong to the noble strata of the population and to the samurai.

As a rule, the inhabitants of these houses were engaged in handicrafts, fishing, agriculture, and trade. Minks, similar to the ancients, are now preserved only in rural areas.

Depending on the occupation, varieties of mink were distinguished:

  • matiya - for the city dwellers;
  • noka - for villagers, farmers, peasants;
  • gyoka - for anglers;
  • gassho-zukuri - for mountain dwellers in distant settlements.

Matiya - home in Japan

The latter are of particular interest and historical value. This was the name of the dwellings in the mountainous areas of the island of Honshu. The owners of gassho-zukuri were engaged in silkworm breeding, so they needed a spacious ground floor for drying products, and an attic for the production process.

Gassho-zukuriin the village Gokayama and Shirakawa are included in the UNESCO Heritage List.

Appearance

For the construction of the mink, inexpensive materials were used that could be easily found. The frame was made of solid wood, beams, the facade was made of wood, clay, bamboo with the use of grass and straw elements.

Particular attention was paid to the roof. Since there were no chimneys, unique high roof structures were erected with several slopes and canopies, which did not allow moisture in the form of snow and rainwater to linger. The roofing of the matia was tiled, tiled, and the roof was thatched.

Even the most modest families tried to surround themselves with a picturesque garden with green vegetation, decorative elements in the form of small ponds, bridges. Often there were separate utility rooms here. The house had a veranda - engawa, as well as the main entrance - odo.


Interior decoration

Minka starts in the hallway - genkan. Here they take off their shoes before going inside.

A typical house is divided into two parts: with a floor covered with earth, and with high niches raised by 50 centimeters with wooden supports - a takayuka. Almost all the time the Japanese spend on the floor: they relax, talk, eat, sleep.

Mushiro and tatami mats made of high quality bamboo are laid on the floor. They, despite their simplicity, are very beautiful , comfortable and practical.

Since ancient times, not only square meters, but also tatami mats, whose dimensions are 90 by 180 centimeters, have been the measure of the area for the Japanese.

There are no separated rooms as such, because load-bearing walls are not used in the space. Their role is played by fusuma movable partitions and shoji sliding doors.

The space enclosed by such screens becomes a room - wasitsu. When guests are expected to be received, the partitions are simply removed, and one large living room is obtained.


What catches the eye in Japanese dwelling is striking order. This is partly the merit of neat household Japanese women, partly - minimalism in the internal structure. There is not much furniture here, half of which, like cupboards and storage compartments, are built-in. The decor in Japanese is also quite modest and is represented by paintings, ikebans, calligraphic elements and a kamidan niche like an altar.

The main piece of furniture is kotatsu. This is a table with a table top, around which there is a blanket or a special mattress - a futon. Looking at the kotatsu from the inside will help you see the hearth underneath, helping to keep warm.

Kitchen, bathroom and toilet are separated from the common area. The bathroom in the mink has always been separate. The Japanese bath ofuro is also famous, where often all family members could wash in the same water, having previously rinsed in a special room.


Home now

Changes

Modern realities dictate their own conditions, technologies do not stand still, new materials appear to replace old ones, and this, of course, is reflected in architecture.

Several trends can be traced that have changed the face of traditional homes:

  • One-story buildings are being replaced by houses with 2-3 floors.
  • The size of housing is influenced by the size of the family - parents try to ensure that each child has a separate corner.
  • Because of the hot and humid climate, houses are made more open, "breathable".
  • In some areas prone to earthquakes and tsunamis, dwellings are built on stilts.
  • Only frame construction made of wood, reinforced concrete is allowed.
  • The imagination of architects is developing along with technology, so there are more and more buildings in the futuristic style with non-standard geometry and layout.
  • Dome houses are gaining popularity - they are made of technologically advanced polystyrene in the form of a hemisphere; their properties are in no way inferior to the usual structures.
  • In the modern interior, traditional tatami mats begin to coexist with classic western sofas, sofas, couches.


Dome houses in Japan

Modern knock

In rural areas, changes in the exterior and interior decoration of houses are not as obvious as in the city. The dwellings here remain fairly traditional, with thatched roofs and bamboo outer walls.

The average area of \u200b\u200ba village house is 110-130 sq.m. It accommodates a living room and 4-5 bedrooms. The kitchen and dining room with a kamado fireplace for cooking are located separately on the terrace as usual.

Town houses

Today, in cities, brick, iron, concrete, bituminous materials are most often used for buildings. There are not so many vacant lands within the city or in the immediate vicinity of it, as in the villages, therefore the courtyards are narrow and elongated.


Such space constraint also affects the size of buildings - they rarely exceed 80 sq. M. Here are located bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen and even a trading room or a workshop, if the owners need them. An attic is built under the roof to provide storage space.

Apartments

The Japanese, striving for a good life, a prestigious profession, and consistently high earnings, flock to large cities, in particular Tokyo. The high population density and relatively small area make it necessary to build high-rise residential buildings with small apartments.

The area of \u200b\u200ban ordinary apartment of this kind is on average 10 square meters, which in itself makes you show ingenuity and miracles of logistics.

One room accommodates:

  • hallway;
  • fenced combined bathroom;
  • bedroom;
  • kitchen area;
  • embedded storage solutions;
  • balcony for drying clothes.


The richer people can afford a spacious 70 sq.m. apartment by Japanese standards. or a house in the private sector within the city.

A few curious facts

  • In Japan, there is no such thing as central heating. On the way to combat the cold, electric blankets, heaters, baths, and kotatsu are used.
  • The Japanese do not sleep on beds, but on mattresses - kotatsu, which are so compact that they can easily fit in a closet.
  • In the kitchen of Japanese women, there are a lot of different dishes and equipment - from dishwashers and bread makers to a rice cooker and an electric grill.
  • Before entering the toilet, you must wear shoes designed specifically for this room.
  • The best description of Japanese style in interior design is minimalism, harmony, purity and asymmetry.


Conclusion

We learned that the traditional Japanese dwellings are called minka. Ordinary people used to live here, and in some areas similar houses have survived to this day.

Family members spend most of their time on the floor, so the main task is to create a comfortable space filled with warmth and harmony with a minimum of furniture and decor. For several centuries, the living conditions and everyday habits of people in the Land of the Rising Sun have not changed much, which makes their homes unique in their own way.

Let harmony and comfort not leave your home. Join us - subscribe to the blog, and we will seek the truth together!

Classic Japanese house is a symbol of oriental culture and spirit. When depicting this architectural building, you need to take into account its features in order for the drawing to turn out to be glorious. The image process itself housebut can be divided into several stages.

Instructions

Prepare sample images. Besides standard photos houses, find some samurai drawings. After all, Japanese house symbolizes a strict and strong defender of his country. If you look, you will find some similarities in the equipment of the samurai and the decoration of the building. Imbued with an idea housea-defender, you can more clearly convey the atmosphere of the building.

Start with general lines. Already at this stage, you put into the drawing what it will be at the end. Determine the number of floors, area houseand. The Japanese building is unique in that it has no restrictions in either the height of one floor, or in diameter, or in anything else. Simply put, you are free to decide the size issue yourself.

Draw design details. Depending on your choice, it may be small houseik from bamboo or stone castle. It is worth pointing out these little things. It is best not to circle light small buildings. Leave some transparency in the walls. Stone giants, on the other hand, must "crush" their walls with their massiveness and inaccessibility.

Pay attention to the roof. It symbolizes the head and helmet of a samurai. Try to point it up, so that it looks like it looks into the sky, waiting for the sun to come.

Decorate house... You won't find Japanese house without hieroglyphs, dragon protectors, sun symbols, or other important elements of Japanese architecture. Fill your drawing with the same for more realism and believability.

It should be understood that the Japanese home today and yesterday are very different things. In our world, everywhere old traditions, materials, technologies are replaced by new ones, the Homeland of the Samurai is no exception. Architecture keeps pace with the times and is changing, in megalopolises it is more noticeable, in rural areas it is not so obvious.

🈚In urban housing, you can find much more similarity to traditional design in the interior arrangement, which can not be said about the exterior.

🈵Attention! Despite the fact that the Japanese style of house building was formed largely under the influence of Chinese architecture, it has a number of important features - simplicity, good lighting and an asymmetrical scheme!

🈯Minimalism is the main component of Japanese life and interior design.

How a traditional house works in Japan

The classic dwelling of Japanese commoners is called Minka... Craftsmen, fishermen, merchants, in other words, all those strata of the population that did not belong to the samurai and the nobility lived in such buildings.

Mink can be divided into several types:

  • matia: where the townspeople lived;
  • noka: peasants lived;
  • gyoka: fishing buildings;
  • gassho-zukuri: mink in remote mountainous areas with steep and massive thatched roofs, silkworm hut.

🈚 Roof Matiya - roof tiles or tiles. The roof of Nok is straw or shingles.

🈯Although Minka, in the classical sense of the word, means medieval buildings, but nowadays this term is applied to any residential building of the Land of the Rising Sun.

Key Features

Mink element
Material
Features:
Basic materials wood, bamboo, clay, grass, straw Easily available and inexpensive materials.
Roof straw, roof tiles It rests on wooden beams, it can be straight, pointed at the corners or raised.
Walls clay, wood The interior walls are usually absent; instead, Fusuma or Shoji (movable screens) are used - Washi's paper is attached to a wooden frame. For this reason, Minka can be safely called open-plan housing.
Foundation a rock This is the only purpose.
Floor earthen or wooden, raised on piles (50-70 cm) Are covered with tatami or musiro mats. Tatami is a more durable and beautiful version, made of special igus bamboo and rice straw.
Furniture tree Little furniture. Built-in wardrobes. Kotatsu can be distinguished. This is a kind of small Japanese table. Consists of three elements: a support, a table top and a spacer between them in the form of a heavy blanket or futon mattress. Often there was a heat source in the floor under this table in the form of a hearth. The most important things are kept in special Japanese chests on wheels Tansu, in case of fire they can be easily saved by rolling out into the street.
Windows and doors wood and paper washi All windows and doors, with the exception of the main entrance, are not stationary; their role is played by Fusuma or Shoji.
Decor calligraphy, paintings, ikebana Everything is very poor in comparison with European houses. Basically, one small niche (tokonama) is allocated to decorative elements.

🈯 There are practically no chimneys. This is due to the raised floor and high roof piles.

Increasingly, traditional Japanese houses are built from several floors, although previously only one level was used.

In general, the history of architecture has developed with a couple of features of climate, relief and other features. For example, high temperature and humidity influenced the fact that the Japanese dwelling was made as open, ventilated and light as possible.
And the danger of earthquakes and tsunamis prompted the use of piles in design. They softened the tremors. They also tried to lighten the roof as much as possible so that when the house was destroyed, it could not cause critical physical damage to the owners.

The Japanese style implies a reverent attitude towards purity and harmony. After all, the premise was originally a project for a person living on the floor. And for such a philosophy, the absence of dirt and chaos is extremely important. It is not for nothing that such things as special slippers in front of the toilet and bathroom, or exclusively white socks, have become customary.

🈚 In fairness, we note that it is easier to maintain cleanliness in Japanese square meters than in our apartments. This is due to the minimal presence of furniture - the main place of dust accumulation.

Separately, the Japanese garden should be highlighted.

Picture: Garden

Harmony with the surrounding world and nature is deeply rooted in the philosophy of this eastern people. And this could not but affect their daily life, including the design of their home.

The Japanese surrounded their houses with wonderful and characteristic gardens only for them. Travelers were amazed by the beautiful and harmonious combination of natural components and man-made products: bridges, ponds, lanterns wrapped in transparent paper, figurines and much more.

But, perhaps, Sakura is the most common element in the Japanese garden. This is not just a plant, it is a real symbol of all eras, dynasties and empires.

🈚 By removing all Fusuma or Shoji, the Japanese transforms the house into a kind of “gazebo” in his own garden, thereby satisfying the innate need to reflect on the meaning of life. This partly explains the absence of classic windows and doors in our understanding.

🈯By the way, many European and American specialists in landscape gardening design take the Japanese style of decorating the local area as the basis of their projects

Device diagram

So, to summarize, then the layout of the traditional Japanese dwelling will consist of the following places:

  • external fence;
  • kindergarten;
  • tea house (more often among the nobility);
  • outbuildings (barn or storage place for tools and instruments);
  • veranda (engawa);
  • main entrance (odo);
  • hallway Genkan;
  • kitchen;
  • restroom;
  • bathroom or Japanese bath ofuro;
  • rooms (wasitsu).

🈯 The central part of the house can be composed of several wasitsu. If a large meeting of guests is planned, then all partitions are removed, and one large hall is obtained!

🈵Important! The Japanese often measure rooms not by square meters, but by the number of tatami. The standard mat is 90 cm wide and twice the length.

In general, tatami is an important element of Japanese culture. Their number and location can determine the character of the wasitsu. For example, it could be a bedroom. In this case, a Japanese mattress Futon is placed on the mats and a standard sleeping place is obtained for a resident of the area, the ancestor of Sumo wrestling.

Tea House or Chashitsu

Important and wealthy families had a tea house on the territory. The first such structures appeared in the 15th century AD. From the name it follows that these places were intended for a tea ceremony and, in general, had the main properties and signs of culture - minimalism, asceticism, space and illumination.

🈯 A pond or a lake around is a classic of the genre!

At the same time, a number of features are observed:

  • Low entrance, requiring the person to kneel down. The main message of this idea is that, regardless of status, everyone must bend down to enter this "temple of tea drinking and spiritual pleasure." The second point - people with weapons were not allowed here, such a door prevented the samurai from entering Chashitsu with weapons.
  • Opposite the entrance, a place was arranged in which certain attributes were concentrated. These were either traditional calligraphic drawings and texts that were the subject of controversy, or relaxing objects like ikebans or incense-wasting sticks and incense burners.

🈚Tea houses in Japan promote meditation and serenity, or vice versa - they are conducive to philosophical conversations.

Pattern: Teahouse in Japan

Ryokan Hotels

These hotels can also be classified as traditional Japanese homes. For tourists and travelers, it is a kind of temple of traditional Japanese culture. Everything in the rooms is furnished in a manner consistent with Mink's hut.

Here you can plunge headlong into the Japanese identity. Sleep on tatami mattresses. Spend time in o-furo. See the traditional kimono dress worn by the staff. Taste national cuisine rich in seafood and vegetables with the help of Japanese hasi sticks.

Japanese style modern house

As mentioned at the beginning, modern Japanese housing has changed a lot, especially on the outside, but the interior design of almost any native of the Land of the Rising Sun contains a touch of national traditions.

In today's realities, when the cost per square meter and interior elements is growing, the Japanese style with its minimalist approach to furnishing is becoming the most practical. And the free layout of their home provides people with the opportunity to realize their design fantasies and ideas.

Buildings in urban and rural areas should be considered separately.

City... The appearance of ancient and modern Japanese cities has changed dramatically. In place of the wooden Matiya, buildings came, erected with the help of materials such as brick, concrete, iron, bitumen.

In the central parts of the cities, business skyscrapers rise, where the foundations of a strong and stable economy are forged. World famous corporations are located here.

Most of the townspeople live in apartments located in multi-storey buildings. As a rule, these are five to seven storey buildings. One-room apartments prevail. The area of \u200b\u200bthe rooms does not exceed 10 square meters.

The layout of such housing simply surprises with its rationalism when using such a limited area. Upon entering, you will see the following view:

  • Small narrow corridor.
  • On one side of the corridor there is a combined bathroom.
  • On the other side there is a built-in wardrobe and a kitchen.
  • Next is a small room.
  • Miniature balcony with a drying stick.

Space saving can be traced in everything. This is a kitchen built into the closet, and the placement of plants on the walls, and a miniature bathroom. Well, the tradition of sitting on the floor, and, consequently, the absence of chairs and armchairs.

Entrance to the apartment

Kitchen in the closet

But you can also highlight some Western influence, for example, the presence of a European bed or console under the TV.

More prosperous people buy so-called family apartments (60-90 m2) or private houses on the outskirts.

🈵 In Japanese houses, central heating is practically not practiced; instead, gas, electric, infrared and even kerosene heaters are used.

Countryside... Homes outside the city are less subject to modern trends. Although many of them today are modeled on Western societies using the know-how of materials, it is still possible to draw an analogy with the traditional Minko.

Everyone decides for himself to what extent his home should correspond to the classic Japanese culture and style.

Let's highlight some of the most common common features that are inherent in houses in the outback and now:

  • The minimum amount of furniture. Ignoring chairs and armchairs.
  • Raising the floor half a meter above the ground.
  • Free layout provided by movable screens (Fusuma or Shoji).
  • High roof.

🈯 The more prosperous the peasant, the more he uses the achievements of modern science. Poor people in the countryside still make a roof of straw, sleep on a futon, warm themselves at the kotatsu's.

Frame structures

Whatever global trends in architecture occur, the Japanese build only frame houses. They simply need this technology to survive in an earthquake-prone area.

The frame house is incredibly resistant to tremors, it absorbs and dampens them, as it were. Frame structures are known that survived a large number of earthquakes over a thousand years and were practically not damaged.

This technology has some advantages! They are relatively easy to repair when destroyed. These structures are lightweight and are unlikely to cause severe fatal damage if they fall.

There are three types of frame houses:

  1. Wooden. These are traditional Japanese Minka, tea houses, temples;
  2. Reinforced concrete. Modern skyscrapers.
  3. Unusual futuristic buildings. Frame technology allows you to build bizarre structures of unusual shapes and their combinations.

Frame unusual structure

Dome houses - the most modern Japanese technologies in the field of architecture and construction

They have an unusual design in the shape of a hemisphere. It looks like the alien earth settlements of the future.

The most unique thing is the material. In fact, this is a dwelling made of reinforced foam! He endows these buildings with such useful and necessary properties for the climate of Japan as strength and high thermal insulation. You can also avoid spending on the frame and foundation, which decently reduces its cost.

Europe is actively beginning to introduce this technology in the production of seasonal suburban housing.

At the end of the video on the topic:

    First of all, draw the main lines. Most of them are straight, not sufficiently curved. We draw the contours of the base.

    Now let's add more details to the drawing, lengthen the roof and base.

    Now you need to draw the racks on the sides of the house and in the central corridor. Next, it remains to erase unnecessary lines and just paint the drawing. We get something like this:

    Japanese houses are very interesting in design, diverse and not like other houses.

    But like other houses, they have clear lines in a pencil drawing. Their roofs have a peculiar shape - they have rounded ends.

    For a drawing, you can use the following schemes and samples:

    You can draw these kind of houses.

    The exclusivity of Japanese houses in roofs and windows. The roofs at the corners are lifted up, and if it is a multi-storey one, then each level at the corner looks up.

    There are about 9 variants of Japanese houses

    Yes, pay attention to the windows, there are a lot of them, sometimes the entire wall is occupied.

    To begin with, you should look at some photos of Japanese houses on the Internet in order to get a little feel for their culture, peculiarities of architecture, and an unusual version of execution. Also, most often near the house you can find sakura, which is also revered in Japan.

    Architectural structures in Japan are quite distinctive and interesting. Let's look at how you can draw Japanese houses.

    1) Here is the first option, in my opinion, an excellent view will convey the atmosphere of the country:

    2) Here is another good option; drawing a Japanese house is not difficult at all from this sketch:

    3) And one more option:

    Each country has its own culture and traditions. The associations that arise with the housing of the Japanese is a house with a curved roof upwards, which is a symbol of the samurai. The roof is directed towards the sun.

    However, there are even more unusual houses in Japan.

    For example, a Japanese colorful house.

    Japanese mountain house.

    Japanese forest house

    And they can even build houses on trees.

    Therefore, we choose the type of building we like or a traditional house and draw the building itself along straight lengths, and then add elements to it.

    Do not forget that the Japanese love to decorate their homes with hieroglyphs, dragon drawings, etc.

    We take a sheet of paper. We mark the horizon line.

    Roughly sketching out the frame of the house (it would be nice to have a couple of photos with Japanese houses on hand)))

    The Japanese house is good in the landscape, let's add something like a schematic.

    Let's work on the details a bit.

    It's time to deal with color issues. First, with large strokes - create a color scheme.

    To draw a beautiful Japanese house, you first need to have a sample image on hand. When I was lucky enough to visit Japan, I learned that there are also different houses there, both light graceful buildings and massive stone giants. And still there are both small houses made of bamboo and larger ones made of stone.

    The roof of a Japanese house is a symbol of a samurai's head and helmet, and the house itself must be decorated with hieroglyphs, sun symbols or dragons.

    To make the drawing more reliable, you can draw a landscape of Japanese nature. These are high mountains with snowy peaks, Japanese cherry blossoms, decoratively trimmed trees, rivers, a huge rising sun of red.

    Japanese houses are very beautiful and unusual for Europeans. They look very imposing and slightly belligerent. Most often they have one floor and slightly rounded edges on the roof. You can depict them like this: