Four years ago, Norway’s Snorre Stinessen added the finishing touches to a cluster of seaside cabins on the country’s Manshausen Island, a private 55-ac (22-ha) resort located within the Arctic Circle. The architect has since added a few more dwellings to the mix, offering adventure seekers more options to relax, unwind, and take in the remote surroundings.
Some of the recreational activities on offer on the island of Manshausen include diving, hiking and kayaking, and the original set of four cabins completed in 2015 offered a cozy base from which to enjoy such pursuits. These wood-clad structures cantilevered out over the frigid waters and used floor-to-ceiling windows to provide panoramic views of the coastline.
The three additions to Manshausen Island are made from cross laminated timber and clad in aluminum sheeting to endure the extreme Arctic conditions along with the salty water below. They occupy a rocky perch at the northern end of the island and, like the other cabins, jut out over the sea with floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides.
Stinessen has also added a sauna and relaxation area that connects with a seawater pond in the island’s center. He says this was actually made from materials that were left over from the construction of the original cabins, along with discarded slate roof tiles his team found on the island.
The Manshausen 2.0 extension project was completed last year, but has since earned a string of nominations for various architecture awards, including the 2019 Architizer A+Awards and the 2019 Dezeen Award, and it also took out the International Design Awards Architectural Design of the Year.
Source: Stinessen Arkitektur via Dezeen