Whistling Wind Island by Akb Architects is "surrounded by open waters and expansive sky"
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Architecture studio Akb Architects has created a cluster of silvered cedar buildings on a remote archipelago in Ontario, Canada, as a summer home for a kite surfer.
The freshwater landscape of Pointe Au Baril, three hours north of Toronto, comprises strings of rocky islands along the coast of Georgian Bay. Whistling Wind Island is one of the furthest inhabited from the mainland, and the one-acre site was entrusted to Akb Architects to create a seasonal residence for a kite-surfing enthusiast and his family.
“Surrounded by open waters and expansive sky, [the island] is continually exposed to changing water levels and mercurial weather patterns where morning sunshine can change to unexpected hail storms by the afternoon,” said the Toronto-based firm.
“The robust wind conditions make Pointe Au Baril the ideal location for the owner to enjoy his passion for kite surfing,” the team added.
The residence comprises four pitch-roofed structures, each clad in silver-weathered Western red cedar shingles that blend with the surrounding rocks in certain light.
The main cottage sits at the highest elevation, while a bunkie cabin for extra guests, sauna, and boat storage containing a small fitness studio, were placed on various other outcrops.
Wooden decks wrap the two larger buildings to provide views from all angles, and gangways and jetties over the rocks and water link all four together.
“Their asymmetric shapes fan out over the terrain with steps angled in harmony with the natural topology of the sediment rock,” Akb Architects said. “There is very little sense of front and back entry points.”
Large triple-pane glass panels slide open to connect indoors and out, allowing cross breezes to naturally cool the interiors.
Other windows have deep overhangs that provide shade from the high summer sun, and create niches for seats and desks inside.
The 1,800-square-foot (167-square-metre) main cottage comprises an open-plan living, kitchen and dining room, two bedrooms, a shared ensuite bathroom and a laundry room.
Its spaces are clad almost entirely in custom whitewashed cedar boards, laid horizontally to emphasise the lines of the landscape.
In the communal area, the boards cover a lofted ceiling above a fireplace wrapped in local Muskoka granite slabs.
A similar approach to materials is used in the bunkie, which sleeps four and houses another bathroom, along with a kitchenette and lounge area anchored by a flagstone fireplace.
“The visual solidity of these buildings fosters comfort in knowing these dwellings can withstand the extreme weather patterns of nature, while the modest scale and tactile warmth of the interiors provide a cozy refuge that is experienced most intensely when the sun sets,” said Akb Architects.
To minimise the impact on the landscape, the two primary residents were built on the footprints of preexisting structures.
They are heated by the wood-burning fireplaces, and use a tankless on-demand hot water system for the laundry and dishwasher, while bathing occurs solely in the bay and an outdoor shower also purposes the natural water source.
The seasonal use of the cottage is dictated by boat access, which in Pointe Au Baril ends around November when ice forms on the water.
During the harsh winter, recessed aluminium garage-like doors roll down to cover the buildings’ windows, and the floating docks are removed from the water.
Akb Architects was founded in 2004 by Robert Kastelic and Kelly Buffey, and the studio has previously designed a blackened wood holiday home and boathouse on another Ontario lake.
Other recently completed homes across Canada’s dramatic landscapes include a pair of century-old saltbox houses modernised on Newfoundland’s seafront and a cedar-wrapped house “inspired by the scattered boulders” on the Nova Scotia coastline.
The photography is by Doublespace.
Project credits:
Architecture team: Kelly Buffey, Robert Kastelic, Donald Peckover, Byron White, Tim Wat, Antonio Morais, Nicole Rak
Furniture curation: Anne Hepfner Design
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