rintala eggertsson architects: gjovik care center arboretum

‘gjovik care center arboretum’ by rintala eggertsson architects, gjovik, norwayimage © pasi aaltoall images courtesy of rintala eggertsson architects

the gjovik care center in norway is an organization dedicated juvenile asylum-seekers under the age of 15 who are in need of safety, food, national conflict or help dealing with traumatic experiences. overlooking lake mjoesa, the ‘arboretum’ designed by local practice rintala eggertsson architects was a their suggestion to create a a space of refuge that could also be useful for supplementary activities. the small garden would feature a tree from each habitable continent so that the visitors from all around the world will find a natural connection to their homeland, with the ideas of growth and rebirth.

the plan was derived from a triangulated mercator projection of the world, where all nations are shown in a linear fashion and gives us a sense of the pieces that make up the whole. taking this triangular outline and superimposing it into plan, represented as a short concrete foundation infilled with white rocks. fragments of naturally-charred wood-plank wall segments act as windscreens for the various trees, creating small micro-climates and semi-private areas. integrated benches provide seating and reflection, while gaps in the partitions allow the spaces to spill out onto the surrounding landscape for other activities.

wooden walls sitting on a concrete base harboring the treesimage © pasi aalto

image © pasi aalto

a walkway with integrated benchesimage © pasi aalto

image © pasi aalto

individual trees from different parts of the world in the pockets of spaceimage © pasi aalto

image © pasi aalto

image © pasi aalto

image © pasi aalto

wood wall detailimage © pasi aalto

constructionimage © pasi aalto

panoramic view to the lakeimage © pasi aalto

floor plan / level 0

plan evolution

organization of trees, walls, and foundation

project info:

architect: rintala eggertsson architects, vibeke jenssen, kaori watanabe, sami rintala and dagur eggertssonclient: public construction and property management (statsbygg), tommy pedersenuser: gjøvik care centre address: øverbyvegen 88-104, 2825 gjøvik, norwayuser representative: norwegian directorate for children, youth and family affairs (bufetat), anne-beth brekke, geir rune nyhus and kai børresen    curator: public art norway (koro), mette kvandal and per henrik svalastogbuilding team: dagur eggertsson, julian fors, fabricio ferreira fernandes, matthew donnachie, sölvi magnússon, kaori watanabe and vibeke jenssen.

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