House on the shore

Canadian Architect Designers
Campos Studio built a modernist villa on the rocky shore of Vancouver Island. From the windows of the house you can admire the picturesque views of the ocean through the screen of ancient firs and spruces.

The coastline of Vancouver forms fjords: narrow, deeply cut bays into the land. Cougars and baribal bears still live among the century-old firs, and wolves howl at night. And if you choose the right time, sit on the shore and peer into the Pacific Ocean – the strait that separates Canada from the United States – you can see the migration of whales.

Having received the order, the designers
Campos Studio packed up our backpacks and went to study the site of the future construction, a forested area on the top of the hill. Designers drew inspiration from nature, so they refrained from the traditional impulse to put the house in an open area facing the ocean. Together with the hostess, they decided to make the house a place for communication and contemplation of nature. It was decided to preserve the wooded area in its pristine beauty.

Tall, slender trunks of fir, pine and cedar trees served as inspiration for the structure of the house. The space unfolds around a central concrete column that resembles a tree trunk. The beams rest on it, and in this place the ceilings have the greatest height. The column, together with the chimney of the wood-burning stove, combines the interior with the rhythms of the forest. The forest seems to pass through the house, and panoramic windows enhance this magical feeling.

The complex asymmetrical layout of the house is tied to the territory and carefully thought-out landscape views. In the center are the kitchen, living room and dining room, which open onto a terrace on the south side of the building, from which the sea can be seen through the trees. The core of the building separates the master bedroom from the guest bedroom, located in the other wing.

The interiors are finished with larch wood with a natural light texture. Outside, the house is finished with darker wood and dark metal paneling. The house seems to grow out of a rocky cliff, in harmony with the surrounding nature: wood, stone.

The unity with the landscape, sustainable materials, and openness to the surrounding space make this contemporary villa the perfect place to relax in nature.