Escaping into Nature
Suspended between earth and sky, the tree house has reached cult status in our contemporary world. It represents a font for architectural and design experimentations and a stimulus for the innovative or alternative use of materials and technologies. The design and the realisation of a tree house has become, therefore, a challenge for architects and designers, a challenge to make a space extremely habitable and comfortable which, by constructive necessity, is bound by the most minimal of limitations. Light constructions, flowing and multi-functional spaces, micro-houses which are carved out according to personal needs and depending upon our main living demands, whilst always maintaining the closest of rapports with Nature which, in this particular case, not only surrounds it but is a supporting part of it.
On one hand, though, if a radical life change is perhaps still too extreme for most people, there is however an increasing amount of interest being shown by the accommodation and hotel sector, forever striving to provide its clientele with a service which goes beyond just a simple night’s stay.
In the area of Harads, in Sweden, Kent and Britta Lindvall’s “TreeHouse” has been going in precisely this direction since 2010. They both started off from professions that had nothing to do with this particular sector – he had been a school consultant and she had been a nurse – Kent and Britta are a superb example of turning dreams into reality.
They began with the running of a traditional B&B and afterwards became involved and inspired by the production in loco of the film Trӓdӓlskaren (the Tree Lover), by the director Jonas Selberg Augustsén. They have managed to create a wholly unique situation by involving – right up to this very day – important names from the contemporary architectural scene in order to realise seven different design lodges, suspended up above the earth and immersed between the trees of the evocative and uncontaminated forest all around them. Seven buildings, all exceptionally different from each other, which have gradually become a part of the environment with their very own character and their own particular constructive and stylistic features. This is a whole complex of lodges that has been exclusively designed and that invite visitors today from every single part of the world so that they may enjoy the unique experience of a life that is so closely in tune with Nature.
This design project takes as its reference point what is, in Nature, the home in a tree par excellence: a nest. The apparently natural look of the tangle of branches that work all around this house in the trees is however in sharp contrast with all those elements that have, as a matter of fact, been inherent in the designs for the creation of the interiors – extremely precise and regular in form, from the choice of floors and walls to the custom-made furniture and all in a perfect Minimalist Nordic style. The final result is, therefore, a space which is most definitely artificial, but which manages to become included in a mimetic and emulative way into the surrounding space and, thus, it becomes perfectly integrated within that very world.
With its simplicity in form and materials, this construction fully reflects the local building tradition. Slightly elevated from the ground by means of a stilt-house system, and in the characteristic local red colouring, this building is well-assimilated within the surrounding Nature almost as if it were a brand impressed by Man onto Nature itself. All of the colour that may be noticed on the outside is compensated, however, by the style of the interiors. Interiors in which the typical simplicity of Nordic design and the neutral shades of all the areas inside the building create a peaceful atmosphere which does not take the guest’s attention away from contemplating all of the Nature surrounding the building.
The associated studio of Cyrén & Cyrén interprets its very own concept of a tree house by creating spaces which are quite literally suspended among the trees, with modern lines and materials which are essentially industrial in appearance thus creating a strong contrast with the surrounding naturalness of the wood which contains it. This building is, therefore, a refuge with a privileged view over the surrounding forest – a real telescope onto Nature itself, suspended between land and sky.
Since it has been created by the Tham & Videgård Arkitekter studio this building is, therefore, extremely artificial with materials in reflecting glass and the construction itself is cubic and angular, as far away as possible from the organic materials and soft and spontaneous forms that may be found in Nature. However, its chameleonic conformity with the surrounding environment manages to annul its sharp-cornered appearance. The form of the house is almost cancelled and disappears to the human eye, dematerialising itself and fusing with the surrounding Nature. It becomes a mirror which multiplies the Nature around it, the reflection of which sets up a sort of a constant dialogue with the ever-changing context within which it finds itself, creating continuity with everything that surrounds it. Inside, everything is completely made of wood with custom-made furniture and wholly minimal in design, in pure Nordic style with openings on each and every wall which allow a 360° view of the area around the house.
In sharp contrast with the “Birds Nest” project, this second contribution by the Swedish studio, Iredningsgruppen, represents a truly alien element which is completely unrelated to the whole context surrounding it. Form, materials and lighting system produce perfectly the idea of a space shuttle having landed among all the pine trees and firs of the forest. Aligned, correspondingly, with such a spirit, the design of the interiors, too, reflect patterns and references to the subject of space.
Of all the structures in the Tree House project, this one is the first – in terms of size and the organization of the layout, which differs from the minimum, yet regular, spaces created until now. The interior parts are enclosed within an area which is considerably more articulated and which is developed in the middle of the tree trunks that, as well as surrounding it, keep it up in relation to the ground. The relationship thus created between this space and the surrounding Nature is reciprocally influenced. If, on one hand, the architecture imposes its very presence made up of rigid geometrical forms, then, on the other hand, it is the environment which decides how to act with it and how to modify its appearance. The metal sheet used for the outside covering – naturally exposed to atmospheric elements – changes over time in a way which is totally independent of any desire or design originally sought for it.
– 7th ROOM (By Snöhetta)
With this particular contribution to the complex, the Norwegian studio has created an absolute dialogue between earth and sky. On account of the combination of its natural materials – such as burnt wood – and artificial materials – such as the photographic reproduction of trees covering the lower part of the house which seems to reflect the surrounding forest – the perception of this particular structure is exceptionally changeable according to the position of the observer. Each opening has been created in order to produce a direct contact between the guest inside and the Nature outside, from the sky above to the trees surrounding it.
– BIOSPEHERE (by BIG, Bjarke Ingels Group)
The latest arrival among the tree houses is Biosphere, designed by BIG group.
“We designed our addition to Treehotel – Biosphere – to create a unique experience for hotel guests, which takes inspiration from the qualities of the surrounding forest and absorb them into the interior. The ecological response is the driver behind the architectural expression, helping to create a positive environmental impact.”
A house in a tree is not only a question of space but it is also, especially, a question of sensitivity and time. It is the answer to a quest for a lifestyle which is alternative, more directly in touch with Nature and with a glance at the world from another perspective since we all know that “he who wishes to look closely at the earth needs to keep at a certain distance” (Italo Calvino – “The Baron in the Trees”).
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on January 10th, 2020, n° 02/2020
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