Scan Magazine | Special Theme | Nordic Architecture Special – Norway
A place to call your own Many of us have that one special place in the world that pulls on deep feelings of belonging and identity. What is it about reclusive sites that seem to be so appealing to Norwegians, and how can such a place be approached to reach its potential? In architect Carl-Viggo Hølmebakk’s project for a summer house addition, patience and respect are key as tradition meets modern, small meets large, and the need for comfort meets the desire to experience nature at its most raw and beautiful.
on a vast plot facing the rough sea, was not quite big enough and needed an extension. Hølmebakk’s team had several challenges with the small project, from working with a frail old house to accessing the remote site with materials and how to consider historical heritage values.
By Eirik Elvevold | Photos: Carl-Viggo Hølmebakk AS
“We’ve specialised in architectural tailoring in different forms and often work with demanding projects on complicated sites. We are inspired by and adapt our project ideas to the client, nature and topography. For instance, we’re good at building without using explosives or taking down trees,” says Carl-Viggo Hølmebakk, architect and general manager of the Norwegian architecture firm carrying his name. Hølmebakk established his own Oslo office in 1992, after studying and teaching architecture at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO). In the late ‘90s, the office became involved in designing and developing the National Tourist Routes of Norway, but never stopped focusing on smaller, private projects. 32 | Issue 93 | October 2016
“The National Tourist Routes is a spectacular project with dramatic sites – it has really become iconic and has reached out to many people, but in the private projects people let us into their personal dreams. There are always plenty of feelings involved when a client picks us to design something, which can sometimes be quite intimate. Maybe they’ve grown up on the land or have high hopes of living out their ambitions there. Regardless, they have a deep desire for everything to be perfect,” says Hølmebakk.
Going the extra mile One of Carl-Viggo Hølmebakk’s latest projects was completed in the municipality of Flakstad in the world famous Lofoten archipelago. An old house of the north Norwegian style, ‘Nordlandshus’, located
“From the beginning, it was clear that the elements of this task were quite basic – almost primitive: a 25-square-metresmall, warm and protected interior in a