AVS. Arkitektúr verktækni skipulag - 01.09.2004, Page 32

and were prepared for some coun-
try living somewhere.
In the end we discovered a plot
at a good distance from the capital,
in Kjósarhreppur, approx. 35 km
from the eastern part of Reykjavík.
The size was near to what we had
been thinking of around 4 ha. The
location of the plot is good, by the
Laxá bay in Hvalfjörður, on a slope
from the main road to the sea with
small rivers on each side. Natural
vegetation is largely moss and
heather on an undulating surface.
The birdlife is varied and some-
times seals can be seen in the bay.
Salmon can be seen jumping from
the sea during the summer and
small trout are in both of the rivers.
The house
It was obvious that we had arrived
at a plot that had not been touched
for centuries - no cultivation had
taken place, the area had not been
well suited for grazing and, as could
be expected, there were no trees in
the area.
The concept for the house
came quickly as there were no
limitations on the form and loca-
tion of the house. However, several
design premises were tried and
several alternatives investigated.
It was decided to use the length
and the man-made form which is
most often symbolized by sharp
and straight lines. Some struggle
between Nature and the man-made
form takes place where parts of the
house are pulled out that are more
related to chaos and appear at
first to have no direct logic behind
them. The house is sited from north
to south with a good view towards
Snaefellsjokull, and the mountains
Skarðsheiði and Akrafjall. Choice of
materials is traditional, the exterior
cladding is for the most part corru-
gated alu-zinc, the roof and external
walls are mede of timber on an in
situ concrete foundation and an
interior wall running along the house
is cast in situ. The entry is clad in
vertical timber. The size of the house
is around 200 m2 and the workshop
is approx. 35 m2. The total length
of the house is 42 m and the width
4,8 m.
The Lifestyle
Your lifestyle has to change if you
live in a place like this. You have
to organize your life better, it takes
time to drive to work and shop for
the family. What matters most and
what is most valuable is, however,
the openness of the area and the
environment. The possibilities for
a varied life are great, especially in
connection with Nature. There is
good fishing all around, we produce
our own eggs with lcelandic chick-
ens and we can also grow our own
vegetables. ■