Whether you think Alex Garland's film "Ex Machina" is a mind-bending classic or a future camp hit (the Dancing Scene, anybody?), one thing is certain: the architecture of the real-life Hotel Juvet is stunning. Designed by Jensen & Skovdin Architects, the hotel is located in northwestern Norway near the town of Andalsnes in a place known as Valldal.
The Hotel Juvet has been designed to feature the splendor of the neighboring mountains and rushing river: each of the distinctive nine rooms features at least two walls made entirely of glass to give the best possible views. Additionally, no one room looks into another, creating a sense of privacy while immersing guests in nature.
The officially branded "landscape hotel" was designed and built in two principal stages: seven rooms and a spa building were erected in 2010, while an additional two rooms were added by 2013. The plan, which allows a total of up to 28 rooms to be built, was created with sustainability in mind. Conservation authorities granted permission for the hotel only after being reassured that each of the rooms is sited to fit in with the existing topography: no rock blasting was required.
In order to eliminate any interior reflections or distractions from the outdoor view, the interiors have been treated with a transparent oil flecked with black pigments. Additionally, all built-in interior features, such as shelving, have been made out of the same monotonous massive wooden elements as the frame for the original seven rooms. This creates a clear distinction between indoors and outdoors while keeping the visual focus on the landscape.
The Hotel Juvet's seamless embedding in nature exquisitely reinforces the underlying themes of "Ex Machina." While a thorough explanation of the thought behind the set design for the film can be found here, the architecture remains astonishing on its own.
Simultaneously advanced in its materiality yet primal in its siting, the glossy sheen of the architecture inhabits its natural settings with a surprising ease. Seven of the rooms have been designed without winter insulation and are meant for fair-weather habitation only, giving the Hotel Juvet a faint summer cabin feeling. The remaining two rooms are available for winter stays, allowing guests easy access to nearby skiing and other outdoor recreation.
6 Comments
I want to see this movie so bad...
jla-x, best sci-fi in years. And this movie set is really something.
Nice packing, but the box is empty...No, it's not empty! There is some primitive content in. And that became the rule - to dress garbage in high end design and light philosophy for dummies. Manipulating with young minds, just like Ave. The hidden message is - Let us all be smart psychopaths cause it is so cool.
/\ what?
So impressive!
feed!
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