The SiOO X Story – Protecting the Planet - Book - Page 43
Part 2
Case Studies
Introduction – The Summerhouse
AS A BUILDING type, the summerhouse is something of a
cultural and social institution in Sweden: the country is home
to around 600,000 of these distinctive structures. With 20% of
Swedish families (around 1.8 million people) owning one and
another 50% of the population having access to one through
family or friends, the ritual of moving to the summerhouse
for an extended stay during the warmer months of the year is
deep-rooted in the Swedish psyche.
There is a distinct difference, however: modern timber products and systems, together with advanced wood protection
technology, have largely replaced the carpentry techniques
of old, and are used with considerable architectural assurance.
Rooted in the history of Swedish life, the design of the modern
summerhouse is an eloquent expression of the country’s contemporary culture.
Passed down from family generation to generation, the original examples lacked utilities such as hot (or any) water, drainage, electricity or insulation and were built simply as shelters in which to relax
in warm weather or as a place of retreat from summer heat. Over
time, they became more sophisticated in design: still essentially
simple in form, but with white-trimmed corners, windows and
doors standing out against the ubiquitous red-coloured exteriors.
In recent years, the cost of living in Sweden’s major towns and
cities has made the traditional summer retreat an attractive,
year-round commutable proposition, a demographic shift that
has created the opportunity for the country’s architects to re-investigate the summerhouse typology in distinctively modern,
but quintessentially Swedish, materials and forms.
The new generation of Swedish summerhouses not only stand
as long-stay rural dwellings in which to relax and wind down
from the rigours of city life, but as visible evidence of continuity
in the use of timber as the preferred method of construction.
Summerhouse in Dalarna, Sweden, Architect Leo Qvarsebo. Photo: Stendahls.
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