Northern lights observatory

The project was presented in a open competition for students. The programme brief included an observatory and besides as well as a planetarium, ten rooms for visitors, a restaurant and space for a sauna. The site proposed was a leafy forest, near to the Kemijoki river which crosses Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland and the supposed hometown of Santa Claus.

The observatory complex draws the visitor into a cluster of little huts hidden between amongst the trees. Each hut rests on a single column that bears the load like a trunk load supporting the branches and leaves. The project is predominantly faced with wood, to mimetize with which mirror the context surrounding trees.

The form of the units flows taking care of the fir trees, and they have a sweeping wooden roof to evacuate the rainwater and snow - the project form demonstrates how integral nature and site are to this work.

The form of the units demonstrates how integral nature and site are to this work. The flowing arrangement of units respects the edge of the fir trees, and their sweeping wooden roofs evacuate the rainwater and snow.

    

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The project was presented in a open competition for students. The programme brief included an observatory and besides a planetarium, ten room for visitors, a restaurant and space for sauna. The site proposed was a leafy forest, near to Kemijoki river which cross Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland and the suposed hometown of Santa Claus.

The observatory complex drawn the visitor into a cluster of little huts hidden between the trees. Each hut rest on a single column what bear the load like a trunk load the branches and leaves. The project is predominantly faced with wood, to mimetize with the context.

The form of the units flows taking care of the fir trees, and they have a sweeping wooden roof to evacuate the rainwater and snow - the project form demonstrates how integral nature and site are to this work.