Changing viewpoint: BTE Architecture creates a pyramidal pavilion in Scotland
![The Pyramid viewpoint](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/LWkvVgqVYgNg4in5axyQVZ-415-80.jpg)
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.'
Set on a rocky peninsula overlooking Loch Lomond, the pavilion was conceived to create a new context for the landscape
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.
’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
The Pyramid, was primarily, created as a viewpoint - a place to take a moment and take in the gorgeous Loch Lomond views
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
INFORMATION
For more information on BTE Architecture visit the website
Photography: Andrew Lee
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
-
‘Hedonistic and avant-garde’: Rabanne’s Julian Dossena on the legacy of the chainmail 1969 bag
Paco Rabanne’s 1969 chainmail handbag encapsulates the late designer’s futuristic, space-age style. Current creative director Julien Dossena tells Wallpaper* about the bag’s particular pleasures
By Jack Moss Published
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
The Mercury Prize nominees for 2024 have been revealed
Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and Beth Gibbons are amongst this year's nominees
By Charlotte Gunn Published
-
Tour the Natural History Museum’s new gardens, a Jurassic lark in London
The Natural History Museum in London has unveiled two new gardens, with resident dinosaurs, after a transformation led by architects Feilden Fowles
By Bridget Downing Published
-
Drama Republic moves into a colourful, handcrafted workspace in London
For the new creative HQ of production company Drama Republic, Emil Eve Architects remodels a warehouse into office space in London’s Holborn
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Hideaway House in London features timber panelling inspired by the New York hospitality scene
The elegantly refurbished Hideaway House by Studio McW in London features timber panelling inspired by Philip Johnson’s The Four Seasons Restaurant
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
The Duho Pavilion by Limbo Accra immerses us into its Caribbean setting
The Duho Pavilion by Limbo Accra is a Cayman Islands landscape project that celebrates the Indigenous Caribbean Taino people
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
‘Modern Buildings’ tours south-east London through a guide to post-war Blackheath and Greenwich
‘Modern Buildings: Blackheath and Greenwich’ is a detailed survey of a London borough’s rich trove of new modernist architecture
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Triangle House invites you to its inner world of colourful surprises
Triangle House by Artefact is a private home in Epsom, outside London, combining Caribbean style, colour and functionality
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tour the refreshed Saint Andrew Holborn: an icon reveals its crisp new interior in London
DaeWha Kang reimagines Saint Andrew Holborn church through a sensitive architectural solution that blends tradition and modernity in London
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A Suffolk house by Studio Bark pairs a fresh visual language with low-energy design
Suffolk house Water Farm is off-the-grid but defiantly on the map, a bold new object in the landscape with a strong visual impact and minimal carbon footprint
By Jonathan Bell Published