Klara Andersson
Handledare/
Johan Celsing
Supervisor
Examinator/
Per Franson
Examiner
Examensarbete inom arkitektur, avancerad nivå 30 hp Degree Project in Architecture, Second Level 30 credits
8 juni 2017
View, Bedrock, Forest, Forest Edge -
a Recreational Facility at Avholmsberget
site plan 1:20 000 site plan 1:5 000 site plan 1:500
- a recreational facility at Avholmsberget
view, bedrock, forest, forest edge
The Dellen lakes consist of two lakes, Norrdellen and Sördellen, which are situated in the area of Hälsingland, about 300 kilometres north of Stockholm.
The lakes were created by a kilometre-sized meteorite which hit the Earth about 90 million years ago. The explosion made some the bed-rock melt and a new type of bed-rock was created, named Dellenit. The northern lake is both larger and deeper than the southern lake, with a maximum depth of 65-70 meter.
The area of the Dellen lakes is surrounded by hills which in the dis-tance get a blueish colour, and on some days the blue hills together with the water and the sky create an almost monochrome blue world in the far distance, only interrupted by the red farmhouses scattered in the open landscape.
The site at Avholmsberget is located about 210 metres above sea-lev-el, and 150 metres above the Dellen lakes.
There has been a restaurant/café on the site since 1965, and the attraction has been widely appreciated by both tourists and locals. The past years the restaurant has struggled to make a profit, and it has been on sale for some years now. The lack of possibilities to stay overnight at Avholmsberget has been mentioned as a major issue throughout the years, and recently (2015) there was a proposal from a potential buyer to convert the site to a larger tourist attraction with rental cabins, a hostel, a gourmet restaurant, ice cream café and conference facilities for courses, retreat and/or artistic activities. The municipality was positive to this development, but the project was cancelled before a detailed development plan had been es-tablished.
the site
- Dellensjöarna
- Avholmsberget
The existing buildings on the site consist of the top cabin from the 50´s, the restaurant building which has been extended and altered several times, and a big garage.
In my design proposal the top cabin is left untouched. The restaurant building is altered in many ways, which goes back to its history of al-teration after alal-teration, and the lower part is demolished in order to create a simpler building volume with a stronger formal relationship to the top cabin. The garage is demolished in order to give space for the new buildings.
My proposal includes four new buildings, which relate to the existing restaurant building in size, angle of roof, facade material and the placing of the buildings.
- Proposal
• Do not build on the most beautiful spots, let those places remain untouched.
• Try to build mainly where the landscape has already been altered by humans earlier.
• Keep the scale of the buildings similar to the existing buildings. • Use the characters of the landscape in the interiors of the
buildings in order to strengthen the character and create a strong sense of materiality
- Conditions/rules
The program of the proposal is a small recreational facility with a res-taurant, conference facilities, a reception, hotel rooms and a bath. The size of the program is approximately 1200 m2.
Rough approximation:
- Staff and information building: 200 m2
- Hotel rooms (10 á 25 m2): 250 m2
- Bath building: 210 m2
- Conference building: 300 m2
- Restaurant building: 230 m2
- Program
klara andersson, studio 3
1954
The small mountain top cabin (toppstugan) was built by the farmers of the village.
1964
The road up the mountain was constructed and opened.
Electricity.
The first building on the site (except for the top cabin) was built by the municipality of Bjuråker on the ground owned by K-E Östberg.
1970
The municipality of Hudiksvall was established, to which the former municipality of Bjuråker now belonged.
The original building, built by Bjuråker mu-nicipality in 1964, was now extended into an L-shaped building.
1971
The road up the mountain was being asphalt-ed.
1989
Change in ownership of the ground, from fa-ther to son.
1990
The building was bought from the municipality of Hudiksvall and became private owned by the family owning the ground.
1990-1991
The building was extended with 100 m2, for a kitchen and other spaces.
1996-1997
Big conversion and extension of the existing building. A second floor level was built, con-taining a permanent dwelling for the owners.
2017
The site is for sale
kitchen storage kiosk staff wc dishes wc wc entry restaurant bedroom kitchen bedroom living room office wc kitchen storage kiosk staff wc dishes wc wc entry restaurant bedroom kitchen bedroom living room office wc
existing situation preserved and demolished buildings preserved and proposed buildings proposed situation
• darkness, shadow and light • materiality
• an element of surprise, something unexpected • totality over detail
• mist • fire • water • (movement/sequence)
- Architectural parameters
design
This architectural parameter can be found in the interiors of the buildings. Not all spaces should have the same type or amount of light, and dark spaces are important - both to contrast against the lighter spaces and to awaken our senses. Not all rooms get daylight, and not all rooms get the same amount or type of light. In the conference building the corridor space at the core of the building get no direct daylight, only rays of light from adjacent rooms, and have instead the darkness combined with the warm glow from the fireplaces. In the bath building only three spaces are lit by daylight; the entry space with high windows, the relaxation room at the end with its huge windows, and the steam bath with its thin strip of sky-light. The other spaces are lit artificially, and are darker than the spaces with daylight, providing a more intimate and protected atmosphere. The pool in the bath building is lit by lamps at the bottom of the pool, creating a pattern on the walls and ceiling from the water, which can be enjoyed by the visitor.
- Darkness, shadow, light
The aspect of materiality is dealt with in the interiors. To be surrounded by one specific substance. Each building has its own material palette, and they are very different from each other. The materials and colours chosen for a specific build-ing strongly relate to the character of the nature surroundbuild-ing that particular building. The building by the exposed bedrock has a grey palette, with concrete, stone and stainless steel. The building next to the forest has a warm brown palette with pine wood, brass and some elements of concrete where needed. The restaurant building by the view over the lakes has a white palette with white painted wood, white linen textiles on the walls and a lot of glass towards the view. The building by the forest edge has a black theme, which con-nects to the change of light at the site, from the dark forest to the light viewpoint.
- Materiality
The unexpected. The sensation of surprise is something that I find to be important in the ex-perience of spaces. In my project the element of surprise is mainly located at the transition between exterior and interior. A toned down, unifying exterior where all buildings look almost the same, but where the interior expressions come as a surprise with their variations. When you meet the buildings from the outside you can not tell what the insides will be like, and the difference between the interiors of the buildings make the surprise stronger. Even if you have en-tered one building, you do not know what the next building will offer.
- Surprise
Abstraction, simplicity and materiality create an expe-rience of totality before detail. The overall expression, easily grasped and felt by both mind and body, is pri-ority, and the details only aim to enhance this expres-sion, not go against it.
- Totality over detail
Mist, fire and water are said to be very atmospheric substances, and incorporating them into my project has been a goal. They stimulate imagination and address all of our senses at once. Fire has been incor-porated in the conference building by the forest, in the form of fireplaces, placed in a rhythmic pattern so that as you move along the corridor you will get a repetition of spaces with fire and spaces without. Water and mist are used in the bath building by the bedrock. Mist can be found in the steam bath, mak-ing the vision a bit blurry and diffuse, and water can be found in the pool and the shower spaces.
Mist, fire and water
bedrock forest
forest edge
view
sight lines and characters
- Time line
the site in relation to the Dellen lakes
existing restaurant interior
existing restaurant building, ground floor
bath building: in situ concrete structure (foundation-walls-roof), where the roof structure is post-tensioned (efterspänd).
staff and entry building: glulam beams 1
2 1. 22 mm wooden cover strips 34 mm battens bituminous sealing layer
19 mm plywood, 35 mm ventilated cavity thermal insulation vapour barrier 34 mm squared timber 34 mm squared timber 22 mm wood boarding 2. 22 mm wooden panel 34 mm battens weather-proofing membrane 19 mm plywood thermal insulation vapour barrier 34 mm battens 22 mm wood boarding 1 2 3
3. sheet aluminium rainwater gutter 4. sheet aluminium ridge covering
4
detail 1:20, the detail is used in the conference building and staff building, and with minor altera-tions in the hotel room building.
1. 22 mm wooden cover strips 34 mm battens
bituminous sealing layer
19 mm plywood, 35 mm ventilated cavity thermal insulation 200 mm concrete 2. 22 mm wooden panel 34 mm battens weather-proofing membrane 19 mm plywood thermal insulation 200 mm concrete
3. sheet aluminium rainwater gutter 4. sheet aluminium ridge covering 1 1 2 2 3 4
detail 1:20, the detail is used in the bath building.
hotel room building: glulam beams
As a visitor you will reach the location by car or bus, and the first thing you will meet is the staff and information building by the park-ing area. Walkpark-ing towards the entry of this buildpark-ing, you will already get a glimpse of the extraordinary view far ahead. Inside, you can find information about the area, check in or make a reservation for any of the facilities.
As you move along the path, straight towards that view ahead, you will walk between two buildings, with their wooden façades close by your own body, entering a more intimate space.
Further down the path you will reach a small square with tables in the gravel and two big pine trees. From here you can see the entry of the bath building, and you also have the possibility to enter the confer-ence building or take a path up to the hotel rooms.
If you choose to walk further ahead you will reach the end of the path and have to go either right or left. To your left you will have the main entry to the conference building and by the door there are benches overlooking the lakes through a curtain of trees.
You also have the choice to walk along the restaurant building, turn the corner and get an even more breathtaking view over the lakes. Continuing along the facade of the restaurant you will get a glimpse into the kitchen before you reach the terrace and can go inside.
arriving
- the visitor
Since the nature on the site is so fantastic, I wanted to let that be the main attraction, and to try to make the new buildings a bit toned down and function as a quiet background for the nature to play against. This goes for the exterior of the buildings, and explains their simple forms and abstract appearance. The interior is something completely different, it is rich, full of materiality and expression, and aims to enhance the character of the nature by matching it in choice of materials and atmosphere. The contrast between the simple outer appearance and the rich inner appearance of the buildings create a contradiction that can generate a feeling of surprise.
concept
- nature, exterior, interior
All the buildings look very similar from the outside. Simple geometric forms, clad in vertical wooden planks which will turn grey over time, and the details are hidden in order to create this very abstract ap-pearance. The wooden planks on the walls continue over the roof and creates an abstract wooden volume, with the gutters and metal plates completely hidden.
exterior
- simple and abstract
The interiors of the buildings are very different from each other. Each interior is linked to a character of the nature surrounding that particu-lar building, resulting in four different themes; the view, the bedrock, the forest and the forest edge. In each of these themes the material palette go in almost monochrome, and one material dominates the entire space and often cover both floor, walls and ceiling, so that one is completely embraced by one single substance.
Three of the buildings incorporate an actual element from nature in their theme. The conference building, with the character of the for-est has fire in the form of fireplaces. The bath building with the char-acter of the bedrock has water in the form of a pool and a steam bath. The restaurant has the element air, which can be experienced in the dining room with double ceiling height and a huge glass fa-cade towards the big view
interior
- a rich surprise
restaurant, upper floor 1:100
approaching the site, view from parking
walking between two buildings, with the view ahead
view from the entry of the bath building, overlooking the square and the restaurant building
the square, bath building, conference building and restaurant building
the hotel rooms by the edge of the forest
the view
- restaurant building
The most obvious, but also the most breathtaking, character of the site is the view from the mountain over the Dellen lakes. A long wide view, overlooking an entire landscape of water, fields and blue coloured mountains far away. A big space to enter, to feel small but also big. The weather highly influences the mood of this space and creates an ever-changing background. Blue sky, overcast, thunder, full-sun, misty mornings, colourful sunsets.
- character: the view
White, glass, wood, textiles. The restaurant building is an existing building which has been transformed. The existing appearance from the inside is dark with a low ceilings height, making the spaces feel cramped and not so welcoming. Giving the dining room double ceil-ing height and big high windows towards the main attraction - the view over the Dellen lakes - is a way to give the restaurant a lighter appearance. White painted surfaces and fabrics further add to this expression. The upper floor of the building has been converted from a dwelling to two secluded dining rooms, and the new restaurant kitchen is made similar to the existing restaurant kitchen. The interi-or of the building relate to the character of the nature is the feel-ing of spaciousness and lightness. A big high white space meetfeel-ing the open landscape ahead through an almost invisible boundary of glass.
- building: restaurant
section 1:50 plan 1:50
the bedrock
- bath building
section 1:50
A second character on the site is the exposed bedrock, creating a ridge of huge stone formations with boulders of bedrock. An aus-tere environment where the stone dominates, hard, grey and heavy. Smooth and rough edges, cracks and small cavities. Some of the boulders are partly covered by a mix of moss and old fir needles from the surrounding pine trees, but stone is still the main visible substance.
- character: the bedrock
- building: bath
Concrete, water, mist and stone. A building for relaxation and bath. Spaces of darkness, creating a more intimate and forgiving atmos-phere, with some rooms with different forms of light, as a contrast against the darkness. From the entry you reach a space before you can enter the changing rooms where there is light but you can not see straight out through the windows. The light falling through the window gives a pattern on the surfaces of the room similar to that of water. The next space of light is the steam bath, where there is a slit in the roof creating a narrow skylight, with the light falling on a high concrete wall with a rough surface, highlighting the texture of the wall with its peaks and valleys, and where the steam makes the rest of the room appear diffuse. A protected but yet dramatic space. Another interesting space of light, near the steam bath, is the pool. Here no daylight will enter, the light in the space is artificial and comes from lighting fixtures at the bottom of the pool directed up-wards, creating a changing pattern of light on the walls and ceilings, moving along with the water. A handrail is located just above the water surface, encouraging the visitor to hold on to it while floating in the pool, watching the changing pattern of light playing on the stone tiles covering the walls and ceiling. A relaxing and meditative space. The last light space is the lounge room, and it is the space with the biggest amount of daylight, entering from big sliding win-dows towards the bedrock outside.
the forest
- conference building
A character very common to the region of Hälsingland is the tall pine forest, which can also be found on the site of Avholmsberget. A room where you can see quite far due to the long trunks and the high po-sition of the branches of the pine trees, but where smaller plants and young trees sometimes hide the view. The sloping ground hides the view even further. The ground is covered is moss, giving it a smooth, soft expression.
- character: the forest
- building: conference
Wood and a hint of brass and concrete. Conference rooms of vari-ous sizes with a view over the forest, clad completely in wood. A cor-ridor at the core of the building, connecting the conference spaces and creating a sequence in itself, moving from dark to light to dark, from wood to concrete and brass and back to wood again. A rhyth-mic journey where you will pass by the dark, more intimate fireplace spaces for gathering, feeling heat, smelling the scent of the fire and hearing the soothing sounds, then reaching to a more neutral space where every surface is covered in wood, and then again reaching a new fireplace space.
the forest edge
- hotel rooms
section 1:50
A fourth character on the site is the forest edge. The border where the pine tree forest end and the open view over the lake begin. A transition between two zones, with its own character. From dark to full light, layered to open.
- character: the forest edge
- building: hotel rooms
Black, wood, glass. A dark space with a view through a curtain of tress over-looking the Dellen lakes. Each hotel room has an entry from the outside, a bathroom, bedroom and a private terrace.
