
Lifeguard Station With Amphitheater
ARCHITECTS
Do Architects
LOCATION
Preila, Lithuania
PHOTOGRAPHS
Norbert Tukaj
ORIGINAL DESIGN
Algirdas Sviderskas (1984)
AREA
320.0 m2
MANUFACTURERS
Lunawood
PROJECT YEAR
2016
RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT ARCHITECTS
Gilma Teodora Gylytė, Algimantas Neniškis, Karolina Čiplytė, Aurimas Baužys, Domantas Baltrūnas
Text description provided by architect.
In this wild and vulnerable landscape, battered by constant winds, a small structure provides refuge in the dunes.
Overlooking the sandy Baltic shoreline, this once brutally monofunctional and closed object has been delicately deconstructed into a light and inviting public gathering space - a unique sunset viewpoint on Lithuania’s Curonian Spit.
The station’s newly perforated lower level frames an approaching eye’s view of the sea, a juxtaposition to the panoramic window sheltering lifesaving facilities on the upper floor of the structure.
Below, a ground level cafe/bar spills out onto a timber amphitheater stepping down towards the shore.
This new public space blurs the line between inside and outside, open and closed, locals and visitors and expands the possibilities for enjoying the stunning surroundings of the beach.
The station has been stripped, revealing its honest, concrete structural surface.
Its crisp faces and sharp corners strike a distinct contrast between the station’s clean white lines and the grass covered dunes and ever changing sky, reflecting the constantly shifting atmosphere and light of the Curonian Spit.
