Selevågen House is a private house by the sea in Norway. It is nestled on the bank of a fjord, not far from where it flows into the North Sea. The four bedroom house is composed of three buildings: a main house with two levels, a guest house and an outdoor pavilion. The buildings are made up of a number of square and rectangular rooms that connect directly with each other, without corridors, so that all spaces can be visually and socially connected…
Selevågen House is a private house by the sea in Norway. It is nestled on the bank of a fjord, not far from where it flows into the North Sea. The four bedroom house is composed of three buildings: a main house with two levels, a guest house and an outdoor pavilion. The buildings are made up of a number of square and rectangular rooms that connect directly with each other, without corridors, so that all spaces can be visually and socially connected.
In order to reduce the impact on the surrounding landscape and offer shelter from the harsh climate, the three volumes that make up the house are arranged to create rooms externally as well as internally. Each volume and room is designed to establish a unique relationship to the site and are linked directly, without the need for secondary circulation. This generates a house that is experienced as a collection of overlapping rooms which together offer a more generous sense of space.
The facades of the buildings are composed using large cross laminated timber lintels and horizontal timber panelling that unifies the expression of the different volumes. This allows the exterior to have a life of its own, becoming more than just a translation of the interior functions of the house. It also makes it possible for all sides of each building to correspond to the unique spatial qualities of that particular space.
The overall experience is a house that is less defined by its individual rooms, but rather by how these rooms are linked together. All elements of the building are designed to guide one’s perspective from one space to the next, and it is no longer clear where one part ends and another begins.
