Norwegian cabin concept frames views across the Hardangervidda National Park
Up 30 roof steps of the Gartnerfuglen Arkitekter designed cabin will reveal panoramic views of a lake and plains AS FEATURED IN THE WALLPAPER* DESIGN AWARDS 2020 ISSUE
Typologically hovering between a folly, a house and a viewing platform, this new cabin in the barren, treeless moorlands of the Hardangervidda National Park in Norway seems to be many things rolled into one. Designed by Gartnerfuglen Arkitekter, a young Oslo-based architecture studio headed by Astrid Rohde Wang, Ole Larsen and Olav Lunde Arneberg, Thunder Top is the first cabin to complete by the dynamic trio.
Created for a client with a growing extended family of children and grandchildren, the structure sits on the plot of an existing holiday cabin built in the 1980s in the traditional Telemark region vernacular style. Adapting the original building to accommodate the increasing numbers of its occupants, the architects designed a new structure within a simple triangular outline, featuring a stepped timber roof. Going up those thirty roof steps unveils a panoramic view of the nearby lake and plains. The facades are clad in ore-pine, (a type of cured pinewood) known for being one of the region’s oldest and most hardwearing construction materials – and leaving the hardwood untreated makes for an extra sturdy and largely maintenance-free exterior.
AS FEATURED IN THE WALLPAPER* DESIGN AWARDS 2020 ISSUE
The interior is effectively one big, double-height room, which is attached to the older structure by a glass corridor that squeezes in a wardrobe and a utility sink. The extra space is used as a family hobby room, a weekend office or just a place to relax and be inspired by the views.
The idea is that this humble cabin will slowly become at one with its environment. ‘As everything put here, from the outside, it is slowly appropriated by nature,’ says Rohde Wang. ‘The cabin is an inhabitable beacon, a man-made peak in the rolling fells of Hardangervidda, worn down by glaciers during the ice age.’
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
The McLaren W1 is the latest in the sports car maker's tech-saturated Ultimate Series
First F1, then P1 and now W1, McLaren Automotive reveals its latest limited-edition supercar to the world, a £2m concoction of hybrid power and active aero that is, unsurprisingly, already sold out
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Paul Rudolph at The Met: ‘from Christmas lights to megastructures’
‘Materialized Space: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph’ opens at the Met in New York, exploring the modernist master's work through a feast of an exhibition
By Stephanie Murg Published
-
‘London: Lost Interiors’ gathers unseen imagery of some of the capital’s most spectacular homes
This new monograph is a fascinating foray into the interior life of London, charting changing tastes, emerging styles and the shifting social history of grand houses in the heart of a fast-changing city
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The heat is on: mobile sauna heralds a new breed of experimental hot boxes
Emma O’Kelly explores the emerging world of mobile sauna design in Germany, Norway and the UK, where new design approaches are taking this ancient practice into the modern era
By Emma O'Kelly Published
-
MOCA is a self-sufficient mobile home offering freedom to work (and roam)
MOCA (Mobile Catalyst) is a sustainable mobile home designed by the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, and taking remote working to a new level
By Tianna Williams Published
-
A nest house in the Netherlands immerses residents in nature
Buitenverblijf Nest house by i29 offers a bird-inspired forest folly for romantic woodland escapes in the Netherlands
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Is this the shape of wellness architecture to come?
Explore the future of wellness architecture through trends and case studies – from a Finnish sauna restaurant to UK cabins and a calming Canadian vet clinic
By Emma O'Kelly Published
-
‘Off the Grid’ explores remote but refined homes in North America
‘Off the Grid’, Dominic Bradbury’s new book, is a richly illustrated chronicle of new residential design in far-flung locations across North America
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Câpsula, a series of tiny homes, champions 'living large with less'
Câpsula, initiated by architecture studio i29, brings together tiny homes, wellness and a design-led approach at Dutch Design Week 2023
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
White Rock is a minimalist Canadian retreat designed to be shared
White Rock by architect Omar Gandhi in Canada’s Gaspereau Valley is a holiday home designed as the ultimate retreat to be shared and to foster mental health
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
This modest cabin is the perfect way to experience Norwegian nature
A modest cabin by KIMA arkitektur in Norway makes the most of its dramatic, natural landscape through simplicity
By Ellie Stathaki Published