Project: Hub of Huts
Location: Olang (South Tyrol)
Architecture: noa* network of architecture
Hub of Huts:
the village upside down that seems to defy gravity
Seen from afar, Hub of Huts looks like a bunch of cabins reflected on water. The design concept plays with the horizon line, the perception of upside-down. The seemingly gravity-defying structure — composed of upright and inverted gabled volumes anchored to a platform — is the newest wellbeing addition to Hotel Hubertus in South Tyrol.
The extension is detached from the main building and hovers 15 meters above the ground, supported by two pillars clad in larch logs. Visitors reach the wellbeing area via a suspended walkway. On the upper floor are two whirlpool baths, two panoramic shower rooms and a changing room.
55 ARCHITECTURE Design. Architecture. Style. № 25 * 2022 Design. Architecture. Style. № 25 * 2022
The lower floor is a textile-free area: the central, enclosed part houses the foyer. From here one has access to the soft sauna, the Finnish sauna, a shower cabin, an ice mist shower and a third outdoor pool.
Photo credits: Alex Filz
noa* team
The pool’s water purification systems are cleverly hidden in the inverted pitched roofs. The choice of colors and materials is in harmony with the mountain scenery: aluminium panels in natural brown tones clad the cabins, as well as the thickness of the slab, which is formed by a steel load-bearing beam structure.
The floors are light beige ceramic. Hub of Huts is a project where the force of gravity seems to vanish to make way for unexpected scenarios.
56 57 ARCHITECTURE ARCHITECTURE Design. Architecture. Style. № 25 * 2022 Design. Architecture. Style. № 25 * 2022 Hub of Huts: the village upside down that seems to defy gravity Hub
of Huts: the village upside down that seems to defy gravity