title: Lake Cottage
location: Bolsover, Ontario, Canada
use: Cottage
size: 65 sqm
number of stories: 2
structure: Wood
construction period: 2013
photographer: Naho Kubota
In a forest of birch and spruce trees along the Kawartha Lakes, the cottage appears as a two level, multi-uses space for a large family. The structure composed of a 7m high A-frame pitch roof covered in black steel and charred cedar siding. A deep cut in the building volume creates a cantilevered overhang for a protected outdoor terrace with mirrors to give the illusion of the building containing the forest within.
Fourteen openings in the main living space reveal both inhabited spaces, skies, and trees. A solid timber staircase leads to a loft, having the feeling of ascending into tree canopies as sunlight falls on a wall covered in shingles stained in light blue. While engaged with nature, the abstract composition of the interior spaces allows the imagination to flow.
Using local materials and traditional construction methods, the cottage incorporates many sustainable principles. The black wood cladding of the exterior is a technique of charring cedar that acts as a natural agent against termite and fire. Thick walls and roof provide high insulation value, a central wood hearth provides heat, recessed windows, and operable skylights provide ventilation and diffused natural light.