Sustainable Minimalism
Given our peculiar aesthetics, it’s probably no surprise that lifeiscarbon® have long been huge admirers of the art and architecture of Donald Judd (we are even planning a pilgrimage to Marfa, Texas when we can spare the time). Easy therefore, to see why we love the brutally hard edged work of Norwegian architects BKARK.
Comprising of Geir Brendeland, Olav Kristoffersen and Simen Stori, BKARK was originally established after the architects successfully won a competition to design sustainable low-cost housing for the Svartlamon district of Trondheim. Completed in 2005, the Svartlamoen housing project is a unique example of sustainable multi story wooden housing in an urban context and has been widely published internationally as well as being nominated for numerous awards (including Mies van the Rohe award 2007, The Architectural Review Award for Emerging Architecture 2005, Iakov Chernikov prize 2006 and Young Norwegian Designers of the year, 2005)
BKARK have continued to address the issue of sustainability in their projects and to explore more and more innovative uses of wood in their designs. Recent projects include a stunningly minimalist private home that seems to float above a skirt of glass, converting a car dealership into a kindergarten and over coming Polar conditions to create designer apartments on Svalbard. Latest news is that BKARK have won first prize in a competition to create visitor facilities at the spectacular Torghatten mountain in northern Norway. Take a look below at some examples of their work:
Villa Nilsen/Borgen: Villa for private client
Svartlamoen Nursery: Kindergarten for Municipality of Trondheim
Svartlamoen Housing: Social housing for Svartlamoen Housing Trust in Trondheim
Svalbard Housing: Apartments for Store Norske Project in Longyearbyen, Svalbard
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