The shower in the center of the bathroom room is also open, providing a connection to nature.
The bedroom/living space is enclosed by large glass windows framing the treescape. “I think one of the most successful experiential aspects of a building is how intimately involved it is with the site,” says architect Ant Vervoort. “An expensive view has the effect of divorcing one from the site. In House of the Tall Chimneys, the views are very close and intimate, which makes you part of the site.” The timber used throughout is Eucalyptus saligna, which is native to Australia and sustainably grown and harvested in South Africa.
A long, timber deck extends through the tree canopy at House of the Big Arch. As House of the Tall Chimneys has only a bedroom/living space and a bathroom, all other activities, such as cooking and dining, takes place at House of the Big Arch.
The aluminum windows are powder coated in a charcoal color, which is intended to match the shadows created by the forest and help the building further blend in.
The team lidar scanned around 40,000 square meters of the forested site to create a 3D model—including trees, branches, and roots—that would allow them to accurately determine how to position and design the building to have minimal impact on the surrounding trees. “We then designed a seriously thin building that could slot between the trees,” says architect Ant Vervoort.