ArchShowcase Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. The Kežmarská Hut in Mountains High Tatras, Slovakia by ATELIER 8000October 17th, 2014 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: ATELIER 8000 Architecture ATELIER 8000 participated in the international architectural competition for a new Kežmarská chata (the Kežmarská Hut) in the High Tatras. The competition entry developed by our studio proposes a succinct shape of a simple cube which is seated on one of its vertices and aims at inducing a feeling of lightness and randomness in the observer. Due to its position within the landscape the cuboid evokes an erratic block left behind by the retreating glacier. In the context of mountain peaks the sharp edges of the building merge into the outline of the neighbouring rocks when viewed from distance and thus naturally join the landscape of the site.
Thanks to the positioning of the construction, three sides of the facade are visible from any viewing point, which amplifies the play of light and shadows – the same effect which can be observed on the neighbouring rocks. The glass surfaces of windows and photovoltaic panels along with the light transparency of the metal plating complete the whole picture of the site with a touch of glimmer – just like the glints and reflections which can be observed on the surface of a mountain lake or on thawing ice. The construction is built with glued laminated timber beams made from larch wood.The aluminium facade system is designed in the form of square panels. The dimensions of the individual elements of the facade are designed in the module of 1x1m to facilitate easy handling and transport to the building site. Function of the individual floors: Underground floor – garage for the snowmobile, staff entrance, ski storage, drying room, boots + backpacks, restaurant restrooms, technologies Ground floor – restaurant, deck Energy The design of the individual technical facilities of the building aims at meeting the demanding targets of energy sustainability of the hut. In terms of its energy generation and consumption the hut has been developed as a passive building. The shape and orientation of the hut are adapted to utilise the solar energy to the maximum possible extent. The parts of the facade with energy generation units are oriented southwards and eastwards and face the sunrays directly. Therefore, the solar energy is fully utilised via the photovoltaic panels, thermal solar collectors, and also by direct solar gains through the glazing of the windows. Regulation: A highly sophisticated regulation system facilitates optimum management of the operation of individual devices based on the collected data (climatic data incl. forecasts, occupancy rate of the hut, data from temperature sensors and consumption meters, state of the accumulation etc.) as well as predictions of utilisation of the hut in the nearest future. Contact ATELIER 8000
Tags: Mountains High Tatras, Slovakia Category: Hut |