Woodnest Up In The Air By Helen & Hard

First built in 2020, the Norwegian architecture studio has completed two Woodnest tree houses. The concept features cabins anchored to live pine trees on the steep hillsides of Odda, Norway. Now in 2023, the same team has introduced two additional cabins dubbed Mountain Top cabins.

Architecture is a specific response to the topography and conditions of the site itself. Custom-made from natural materials, each treehouse is suspended approximately 5 to 6 meters above the forest floor and attached by steel collars to the respective trunks of living pine trees.

Each cabin is just 15 square meters and features a hand-carved wooden bathtub as well as a space-saving bed that can be lowered from the ceiling with the push of a button. Continue following the Woodnest tree house tour that will amaze you below!

Starting from the client’s desire to create a unique spatial experience that connects the ordinary and extraordinary sensations of climbing and exploring trees. Woodnest treehouse aims to create a space that truly embodies what it means to live in nature. The treehouse can be accessed by a twenty-minute walk through the woods around Odda, Norway. Between steep paths and dense forests, visitors will be greeted by a high wooden bridge that leads directly to the front door of the tree house. From inside the tree house, visitors can enjoy distant views through the surrounding trees, overlooking the fjord below and mountains beyond.

The essence of this project is to appreciate wood as a building material. Inspired by the cultural traditions of Norwegian vernacular wooden architecture, along with a desire to experiment with the material potential of wood, the architecture is structurally supported by the trunk of the tree itself, and formed from a series of radial gru-layered wooden ribs. The intentionally untreated wood shingles create a protective layer around the building, which over time will blend with the natural patina of the surrounding forest.

Woodnest is an extraordinary project. This architecture aims to allow people to stop for a moment and appreciate the small details of the natural environment we live in, including wooden elements, the daily rhythm of the forest and the sensation of living in nature. Enjoy!