prefab
TEXT BY
PHOTOS BY | @REINIS_HOFMANIS
Vejay Nair
Reinis Hofmanis
Only the Essentials With natural materials and an unfussy attitude, a Latvian prefab embraces the countryside.
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Thirty-seven miles north of the Latvian capital of Riga, in a coastal meadow fringed by apple trees, Laura Dislere, a production designer, and Maris Locmelis, a photographer, created a retreat for recharging after busy weeks in the city. To minimize the hassle of on-site construction, they chose a 495-square-foot prefabricated carbon-negative home designed in Riga and constructed from locally sourced timber in Jelgava, a town less than 65 miles away from the site. The Ray, as the line of homes is named, is made by Manta North, a Latvian manufacturer of efficient prefabs that have proven popular in Nordic nations. The company recently expanded to Switzerland and Germany, and it plans to enter the U.S. market this year. As Raimonds Gusarevs, Manta North’s CEO, puts it, “People are catching on to this idea of having a small, minimalist, and sustainable dwelling.” Laura and Maris were drawn to the design’s natural materials, like the oak parquet flooring and the oil-treated crosslaminated timber walls, as well as its massive 8.9-by-8.9-foot, floor-to-ceiling
JAN UARY/FEB RUARY 2022
DWELL
