ATTEMPT AT ESSENCE.

On an island off southern Finland, this house, hoped to be both holiday home and farmstead, is intended to leave the natural landscape as untouched as possible.

In the multifarious archipelago that surrounds the south-east corner of Finland, there are some islands which are difficult to use in winter because the sea does not freeze solid, but only partly, so they can be approached neither on skis, nor in small boats. Langholmen (near Kimito) where the Baltic joins the Gulf of Bothnia, is one of these, and the Villa Langbo is near its west coast, exposed to the prevailing winds but sheltered by being just within the forest edge.

The building is the farm house of the island's holding, but, because of the difficult winter sea, it is now used mainly for summer holidays, though in future part of it may be converted to productive use. It was built over a six-year period by hand, and one of the first things to be done in the building programme was to erect a roof over the whole area of the complex, under which individual spaces could be created as almost semi-autonomous boxes. A timber platform which rises subtly with the ground acts as base for the boxes; the platform itself is carried on joists supported on stub columns that bear directly onto the rock of the island. Timber ramps link platform to the ground.

In plan, the house is U shaped, with the open end facing south and to the sea. Although it is near the water, it can be seen only in glimpses, for it is partly hidden by the forest, and one of the main criteria in planning was to preserve as many existing trees as possible. Olavi Koponen, the architect, thinks of the house almost mystically, speaking of the ideal of 'dissolving the boundary of nature and a building, and 'man ... marks territory for himself, builds a roof over his head, a place in wild nature'.

The platform forms a terrace round the internal spaces, protected by the roofs projection -- just as well in some cases, for if you want to visit the lavatory in the middle of the night, you have to go outside and along the terrace. Each of the rooms is different, with the living area as a transparent box (including glazed ceiling, under the overall metal roof). All the other spaces are more or less enclosed, according to use and prospect. Cladding varies for the same reasons, and to take account of orientation: the sauna is covered in shaggy shingles in contrast to the transparent rooms; other spaces are discreetly enclosed in pine boarding. To the south end of the living area is a massive freestone chimney and fireplace which works both inside and out on the platform.

All materials are recyclable, and the timber, which makes up most of the house, is local. Notwithstanding the problems of the semi-frozen sea, some of the materials were transported to the site by horses in winter.

H.M.

Architect

Olavi Koponen, Helsinki

Photographs

Jussi Tiainen