Changing viewpoint: BTE Architecture creates a pyramidal pavilion in Scotland

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The Pyramid viewpoint
Past of the new Scottish Scenic Routes initiative, the Pyramid viewpoint was designed by young practice BTE Architecture (Image credit: Andrew Lee)

The Pyramid, a new landmark viewpoint on a rocky peninsula overlooking Loch Lomond, is a triple whammy of firsts. An inaugural architectural project by a newly established young practice BTE Architecture, it's also a pilot project for the Scottish Scenic Routes initiative, a new programme inspired by the National Tourist Routes in Norway that's seeking to develop a uniquely Scottish model to promote the country's destination appeal.

BTE Architecture's response to the Inveruglas site, a popular visitor spot and starting point for walkers to the Arrochar Alps, is to eschew rather than embrace a site-specific approach. 'The Pyramid's geometry, which is based on triangles in plan and section, is universal and as such not specific to or a reflection of the particular site. Therefore the structure does not necessarily use the landscape as its context, but instead creates a new context for the landscape.The Pyramid is deliberately designed as a landmark,' explains Daniel Bär, one of the three founders of the Glasgow and Oslo based BTE Architecture, alongside Stéphane Toussaint and Sean Edwards. 

That's not to say that the Pyramid is simply a stand-alone statement, or indeed a 'folly' without any practical purpose. 'The Pyramid is architecture that wants to be used by its visitors,' continues Bär. 'It is positioned on the most exposed part of the site and visible from afar through its scale and physicality. People look at it.'

'Approaching the structure on the long path forming the only entrance, the Pyramid then appears amongst the trees as a vertical wall that actually blocks out the view. This relationship changes however once the visitor enters through its tunnel and into the view. At this point it disappears and the surrounding hills are more present, almost as walls, than the Pyramid itself. It was designed to be experiential.'

The Scottish Scenic Routes initiative, which is aimed exclusively at young professionals and students, is a rare opportunity for fledgling practices, such as BTE, to physically as well as conceptually construct. 'We are interested in a building culture that is progressive,' concludes Bär. 'In this respect it is important that a younger generation of architects are given a chance to participate by actually being able to create architecture that is relevant and a reflection of its time.'

The Pyramid viewpoint

Set on a rocky peninsula overlooking Loch Lomond, the pavilion was conceived to create a new context for the landscape

(Image credit: Andrew Lee)

The Pyramid Viewpoint

The timber structure is more than an architectural ’folly’ in the landscape. it can be used and also acts as a focal point in the area.

(Image credit: Andrew Lee)

The Pyramid Viewpoint

’It was designed to be experiential,’ say the architects, explaining that it was designed to have a changing relationship to its surroundings as one moves around it

(Image credit: Andrew Lee)

The Pyramid Viewpoint

The Pyramid, was primarily, created as a viewpoint - a place to take a moment and take in the gorgeous Loch Lomond views

(Image credit: Andrew Lee)

The Pyramid Viewpoint

The Scottish Scenic Routes initiative is aimed exclusively at young professionals and students. It is a rare opportunity for fledgling practices such as BTE to construct

(Image credit: Andrew Lee)

INFORMATION

For more information on BTE Architecture visit the website

Photography: Andrew Lee