A Sleek Pool House Channeling Mies van der Rohe Grows From a Mountainside

Cedar, glass, and concrete combine in this minimalist pool house that draws inspiration from Mies van der Rohe’s 1929 Barcelona Pavilion.

Text by

Lucy Wang

View 15 Photos

Built into a mountainside west of Montreal, this modern pool house by Halifax–based MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects doesn’t just embrace views of the St. Lawrence River valley floor—it becomes a part of it.

A zigzagging path built of locally sourced Stanstead granite leads throughs a field of grasses to the Pool House.

A sensitive design approach was paramount to the client, who sought a modern building that would feel like a natural extension of the rural environment.

The spa building behind the pool is topped by a green roof.

"The seemingly simple structure is intricately crafted," says architect Brian MacKay-Lyons, noting that the project draws influence from Mies van der Rohe’s 1929 triumph and modernist icon, the Barcelona Pavilion.

Built into the foot of a forested mountain, the Pool House is located at the edge of the St. Lawrence River valley floor.

"I believe that if any modern architect says they haven’t been inspired by Mies Van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion, they’re lying!" says MacKay-Lyons. "Speaking as both a professor and practitioner of architecture, I believe the Barcelona Pavilion is a masterwork of the 20th century. However, the point was never to copy it. Rather, I was inspired by the elemental qualities of wall, roof, and floor, and the dynamic asymmetry of the Pavilion."

The view from the far edge of the infinity wall to the glass-walled gym and outdoor lounge.

The outdoor wood-burning fireplace is placed inside the board-formed concrete wall. The floors are locally quarried Stanstead granite.

Shop the Look

Mies van der Rohe (Basic Art Series 2.0)

Completed over two years, the 2,500-square-foot pool house is defined by elongated linear forms: board-formed concrete walls, a glass-walled box with a flat roof, and a long infinity pool that extends towards the agrarian floodplain.

The long standing-seam zinc roof extends over the pool to provide shade to the outdoor lounge.

Back into the forest, the Pool House is oriented for panoramic views of the valley floor.

Partly enclosed by L-shaped concrete walls, the glass box opens up to the south and west to take full advantage of daylight. Inside are a gym, bathroom, sauna, and service areas. An outdoor lounge and wood-burning fireplace, sheltered by the monolithic roof with a cedar soffit, overlook the pool.

Western red cedar clads the interior walls and soffit.

A peek inside the sauna, also lined with cedar.

A look at the bathroom sandwiched between the sauna and gym.

"This is an all-weather building, designed for use in all four seasons," the firm adds. "The glass walls surrounding the gym space open completely, reinforcing the indoor/outdoor nature of this space. Services are relegated to the back, north side of the pavilion, and buried below ground."