blog Four-cornered Villa
Posted on April 5, 2011 by admin
Three weeks ago, me and Anders had the pleasure of photographing and spending the night at a beautiful villa, designed by Avanto Architects, in Virrat which is nearly 300 km north of Helsinki. We left after office hours and arrived in Virrat later in the evening. The villa is located on an island and to get there we walked for 45min, dragging our equipment and belongings in sleds, across the frozen lake in sparkling moonlight. I’d have to say it was one of the more interesting ways to travel to a shoot. After a quick dinner we started setting up our gear and prepared for the shoot, and we were done at about 2.00 AM. Three hours later, after a short night of sleep we got up, had a quick cup of coffee and headed out to catch the morning light. It was really cold, -17 if I remember correctly, but in the end it was all worth it because we got some great shots and rewarded ourselves with breakfast inside. When the sun had risen enough to shine it’s rays inside we started the interior shooting. It was a fun job and as a bonus we stopped at a local resaurant, Vänrikki, for a great lunch on our way home:)
Click here to view the complete set of images.
Project name: Four-cornered villa
Architect: Avanto Architects
Location: Virrat
Design and construction: 2008-2010
Gross floor area: 78 m2
Structural design: Konstru Oy / Jorma Eskola
Electrical design: Virtain Sähkötyö Oy / Väinö Sipilä
The site is situated on a horse shoe shaped island and faces north and east. The cross like shape of this simple villa reaches towards four very different views. The space is open and defined at the same time. The exterior is treated all black and to contrast the interior is very light. Dark color makes the building disappear totally when seen from the lake. The roof is flat – there is some warm irony to the clichés of modern architecture. The building is insulated well and heated by wood only resulting in a carbon neutral building. There is no running water and the electricity is provided by the sun. Vegetables and herbs are cultivated on site and the Vaskivesi Lake is known as a good place to catch pike-perch. The simple and ascetic life at the countryside differs dramatically from the hectic city life and provides a possibility to live a life with a minimum impact to the nature.
-Ville Hara, Avanto Architects
