VJAA

Location: Northern Minnesota
Size: 2,500 sf

As outdoor enthusiasts and professional advocates, the retreat clients maintain a long relationship with northern Minnesota. Their deep love of the landscape, its habitats, and ecosystems, underpinned the project’s ethos—being immersed in the forest and lake setting and with minimal impact to the ecosystem. The design supports social use, while discreetly integrating with and framing the immediate natural landscape.

The retreat is located on one of Burntside’s inhabited islands only accessible by boat from “ice-out to ice-in” and via snowmobile or cross-country skis thru winter. Inspired by nearby historic lodges, passive design strategies, and the pine, maple, and aspen forest, the retreat is constructed of local wood species including thermally modified exterior wood siding fabricated in nearby Duluth.

The rugged site formed on the Canadian Shield’s semi-exposed bedrock covered with thin layers of soil provides a unique building challenge. Concrete pier foundations bear directly on rock, avoiding excavation, and minimally touching the site’s sensitive habitats and drainage flows. The exposed geologic formations are rounded, sculpturally dramatic, and primarily dark gray in color providing a dramatic backdrop and design inspiration for the retreat.