While most people want a living space that oozes comfort, for Arakawa and Gins, comfort is a harbinger of death. As Madeline Gins explains, "comfort is rife with anxiety, and elation comes when you erase that." By living in a home that challenges your senses and is difficult to get around in, "everyday you are practicing how not to die."

Their first American structure is known as the Bioscleave House, or Lifespan Extending Villa. It is located on Long Island NY, and cost $2 million to build. The home has remained unoccupied since the project was completed.

There are no doors on any of the rooms (bathroom included), thereby forcing you to reassess your need for privacy. The walls meet at strange angles and are painted with a multitude of bright colors. The concrete floors are hilly and covered with smoothed-over bumps that make walking a challenge, and the windows are set at varying heights so you can't orientate yourself with the horizon. The kitchen is sunk into the center of the home and is practically unnoticeable. Fortunately, there are brightly colored poles to help the unbalanced. Altogether the home has a cheerful yet dizzying effect.

An instruction manual comes with the home, and a waiver must be signed before entering.

Innovative design that challenges our notions of home and life—this is what the architecture of Arakawa and Gins does for us. They force us to question things that we take for granted such as comfort and the inevitability of death. While the author of this article may prefer to live in a house that is relaxing and comfortable, it's good to know that there are still people out there who are questioning limits, challenging perceptions, and working to achieve something we all want—to outsmart death. Andy Asbury