Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek and Anna Piątek, students and graduates of the Faculty of Architecture at the Silesian University of Technology, have won an honorable mention in the international Tree House 2021 Architecture Competition organized by Volume Zero. Their project, Vinda, is a tree house that could be a future response to climate change and rising water levels.
The goal of the international Tree House 2021 Architecture Competition was to design and redefine a childhood dream - a tree house. The building had to be innovative, sustainable and make maximum use of usable space in a minimal footprint. Participants were asked to think about the relationship between the environment and the interior of the house. Their proposal was to be designed for two people and should not exceed an area of 37 square meters. The design was to include: a living area, a bedroom area, space for a dining room and kitchen, a bathroom, space for work and recreation, and any additional function chosen by the authors of the work. The location of the cottage was arbitrary, but coastal areas, riverbanks, mountains and forests were suggested.
To get to the cottage, the authors designed a special mechanism to allow vertical movement
© Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek, Anna Piątek
honorable mention for young architects from Poland
The submitted works were evaluated by a jury consisting of: Widhi Nugroho (Studio WNA), Deepak Guggari (VDGA STUDIO), Tiago Rebelo De Andrade (Rebelo Andrade), Luis Rebelo De Andrade (Rebelo Andrade), Peter Eising (Pacific Environments Architects). Projects were judged on innovation of concept, choice of location, spatial design and response to the given competition theme. The jury awarded three grand prizes and ten honorable mentions. Among the distinguished works, the Vinda project by Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek and Anna Piątek was the only one from Poland.
The body of the building was created on a circular plan, and the construction consists of prefabricated materials
© Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek, Anna Piątek
A house on the Hel Peninsula
Our competition project is not only the fulfillment of a childhood dream of a tree house, but also a response to current problems facing humanity. As the location for our house, we chose a piece of land located on the Hel Peninsula, which, due to rising sea levels, is in danger of being completely flooded," the authors explain.
For the foundation of the building, the young architects used common pine trees - trees resistant to moisture and strong wind, often found on the Polish coast. The lump of the building was created on the basis of a circular plan, and to get to it, the authors designed a special mechanism that allows vertical movement (like an elevator), based on a spiral guide, which also allows the house to rotate around its axis.
The spiral guide also allows the house to rotate around its own axis
© Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek, Anna Piątek
Cononcrete, recycled plastic, prefabrication
To make the walls of the house, the authors, used materials such as hemp concrete thermal insulation, wooden frames, and facade finishes made of Pretty Plastic tiles, made from recycled plastic. Thanks to them and the aforementioned mechanism, the building can be located freely with respect to the world's sides, its production mostly takes place in the factory, so the carbon footprint associated with construction will be minimized.
For the location, the authors chose the pine forests of the Hel Peninsula
© Piotr Gajdka, Mikołaj Kociołek, Anna Piątek
We dedicate the houses to people who may be affected in the future by the impact of climate change on global sea levels, but also for young parents with small children or couples. As an example, we present a complex of seven houses, connected to each other by graveled pedestrian paths and roads accessible only to shared cars belonging to the residents, which will be kept at a car sharing stand , the Vinda project's authors add.
If you're interested in the topic of tree houses and accommodation in the treetops, also read about the Huba project by Pawel Lewandowski and a set of mobile homes by FALA Architecture studio.
