Architects:Fria Folket

Area:20m²

Year:2021

Photographs:Hanna Michelson

Lead Architects:Hanna Michelson

Contractor:AJ Hälsinge renovering och bygg,Bygg Produktion i Bollnäs AB

Program / Use / Building Function:Landscape hotel

City:Vallsta

Country:Sweden

Text description provided by the architects. Bergaliv landscape hotel has completed its second of four planned getaways by Swedish studio Fria Folket. Situated on the hillside of Åsberget Mountain in Northern Sweden, within walking distance from its sibling The Lofthouse, The South Loft shares the same stunning view of the Ljusnan river valley.

The wooden house is placed on a rock ledge balancing between the grandeur of the far landscape and the fine-tuned connection to the surrounding forest. It is composed of the characteristic components of the first cabin with its framed open-air space merged together with the closed volume that constitutes the heated living area.

While the outdoor structure reaches forward, the sheltered room is characterized by the extensive ceiling height of 15 feet providing an airy indoor space of 20 sqm as well as making room for a smaller sleeping loft.

With the purpose of mediating the stillness and simplicity of the surrounding nature the house is equipped with a minimum of furnishings, all made easy to stove away or rearrange depending on the time of day or needs at hand.

In the main room, two square windows, tied together by the smooth surface of pale birch plywood, mark out the space for rest and meditation. Here an extended bench fills the multiple purposes of seating during mealtime, a bed for sleeping, and an elevated floor for the practice of yoga or contemplating the view.

This low birch framing also functions as a utility wall for storing bedclothes and chairs when not used. The materials of the house reflect the palette of the landscape with birch, fir, and heart pine. The construction is free from plastics and the walls and roof are insulated with flax fibers according to nordic building traditions.

Project gallery

Project location

Address:Vallsta, Sweden