Studio North

Birdhut

BIRDHUT

Studio North

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

ARCHITECTS
Studio North

TEAM
Matthew Kennedy, Mark Erickson

DESIGNER AND BUILDER
Studio North

PHOTOGRAPHS
Mark Erickson

AREA
100 ft²

YEAR
2017

LOCATION
Windermere, Canada

CATEGORY
Small Scale

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

Text description provided by architect.

The birdhut is a treetop perch that sits on wooden stilts along a forested hillside.

Immersed in the tree canopy, the hut accommodates two people, twelve varieties of birds, and whatever inquisitive critters come by to visit.

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

In addition to being an inviting place for people to nest, the whimsical façade has twelve birdhouses, each designed for various local birds that live in the mountains of the Columbia Valley, British Columbia.

The materials, form, and orientation of the birdhut were designed to offer nesting opportunities for as wide a variety of local birds as possible.

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

The pileated woodpecker for instance, is a larger bird that seeks out a nesting space 15 to 25 feet above ground, with a 4” entry hole and an 8”x8”x24” cavity.

The warbler, on the other hand, is a smaller bird that typically nests 9 feet above ground with a 1 1/8” hole and a 4”x4”x6” cavity.

Considering both the largest and smallest varieties of local birds, the hut sits 9 feet off the ground, with its peak at 20 feet above the ground and birdhouses scattered in between.

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

Mimicking the process of a bird building a nest, the materials of the birdhut were scavenged from the immediate surroundings.

The hut is nestled in a cross braced structure built of sturdy lodgepole pines foraged from a nearby forest recently ravaged by fire. 

The platform and cladding for the hut is made of planks reclaimed from an old cabin deck.

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

The front facade is clad with western red cedar shingles cut with a custom rounded profile, the radius which were determined by the size of the birdhouse opening and the width of each shingle.

To give a sense of being in the canopy of the trees, the roof of the birdhut disappears with clear 8mm polycarbonate panels.

As a result, the space is passively heated by the sun, acting as a kind of greenhouse that is passively ventilated by two circle windows that punctuate the facade and the entry.

Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson

A bridge connects the birdhut to the hillside and a stone path leads down to a natural spring and campfire.


Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson
Birdhut
© Mark Erickson


Birdhut
Elevation
Birdhut
Isometric

Studio North
T +1 403 478 1193
Studio North
915 9 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0S5, Canada