Our Favourites: Three small buildings in breathtaking landscapes

In close interaction with nature, a sauna in the middle of the Norwegian mountains, a mini hut in the Kanin massif and a mobile accommodation on the Beaulieu River near Southampton create intense experiences with nature.

Microarchitecture Meets Pure Nature: Sauna in Norway

Behind the intelligent wooden cube known as Eldmølla, a small sauna occupies 5 square metres. Conceptualized in the course of a teaching event hosted by NTNU, the sauna stands against the breathtaking scenery of Norway’s rough mountain world and offers a sauna experience that is close to nature.

Client: Knut Lerhol
Architecture: Students NTNU
Location: Leirholsstølen, Vang i Valdres (NO)

Compact mountain hut: winter bivouac high up on an Alpine mountain in the Kanin range
A tiny, narrow structure – a winter bivouac – defies extreme weather conditions in the high Alpine region of the Kanin Mountains. The min-cabin, located in rocky terrain 2,260 metres above sea level, serves as a simple means of shelter and refuge when the nearby mountain hut is closed. Designed by Ofis arhitekti and measuring a mere 2.40 metres wide and 4.90 metres long, it is capable of accommodating nine persons.

Architecture: Ofis arhitekti
Location: Bovec (SI)

Film: Ofis Architects on VIMEO

Exbury Egg: Mobile accommodation for an artist

Stephen Turner does not pursue a romantic "back to nature project" - even if the egg-shaped watercraft with which the artist explores the estuary of the Beaulieu River near Southampton may at first seem like the perfectly crafted realization of a drop-out dream. Fitted with the most modern equipment, he undertakes artistically ambitious field research for 365 days and understands himself as the human voice of a voiceless environment. The leading concept is "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle". The self-supporting and energy autarkic object "Exbury Egg" realizes this principle perfectly.

Design: PAD Studio + SPUD Group + Stephen Turner
Standort: Beaulieu River, Southampton
Time: 15. July 2013 - 14. July 2014