DesignBuyBuild_16_2015
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Spahaus and Trihaus:<br />
Democratized Access To Contemporary Architecture In Nature.<br />
On the banks of Lac Supérieur,<br />
just 90 minutes north of<br />
Montreal (Quebec), a mountain<br />
that was once the property of a former<br />
religious congregation now houses<br />
a creative and innovative model for<br />
integrating contemporary architecture in<br />
a natural environment.<br />
Located on the north side of the Mont-<br />
Tremblant ski resort, in the Laurentians<br />
touristic region, the Fraternité-sur-Lac<br />
resort site values human experience<br />
above all else. In 2012, its developers<br />
entrusted Montreal studio YH2 with the<br />
challenge of creating a series of modern<br />
residences that would be integrated to the<br />
natural environment – hence targeting a<br />
new generation of homeowners who are<br />
sensitive to design, architecture and new<br />
standards with regards to interior and<br />
exterior developments. This approach<br />
marks a clear shift away from traditional<br />
log lodges, the mythical Canadian<br />
cabin or plywood-heavy alpine cottages<br />
surrounded by boutiques.<br />
By signing on to a real estate project for<br />
the very first time, the YH2 team first<br />
conceived Spahaus, which focuses on<br />
horizontal housing, a marriage of wood<br />
and concrete, panoramic vistas and an<br />
outdoor spa. A series of Trihaus – a<br />
big brother to Spahaus – then rapidly<br />
followed, with its three-storey vertical<br />
design overlooking a terrace, providing<br />
owners with the feeling of living amidst<br />
the trees. This cluster of secondary<br />
homes aims to preserve the site’s natural<br />
state, including the original trees, a<br />
river and trails leading to Lac Supérieur<br />
and the Club de la Pointe, an open-air<br />
playground laid out on the shores of the<br />
aforementioned lake, where motorized<br />
vessels are forbidden.<br />
Democratizing architecture<br />
Since setting up shop in Montreal’s Little<br />
Italy neighbourhood nearly 20 years<br />
ago, Loukas Yiacouvakis and Marie-<br />
Claude Hamelin have given life to many<br />
distinctive residential and commercial<br />
projects that have attracted attention both<br />
in Canada and around the world. For<br />
Yiacouvakis, his team’s utmost priority<br />
is to democratize access to architecture.<br />
“I believe it is in everyone’s best interest<br />
to democratize the work we carry out,”<br />
he explains. “We aim to deliver carefully<br />
thought-out residences, but even more<br />
importantly, to send out a clear message<br />
that architecture doesn’t merely cater to a<br />
privileged minority.”<br />
Therefore, YH2 is always on the hunt<br />
for the best playing surface in a natural<br />
environment where it can integrate<br />
projects that are inspiring, functional and<br />
affordable. “I believe that a secondary<br />
residence should allow for a deeprooted<br />
connection with nature and the<br />
surrounding landscapes, all the while<br />
offering a living space wherein one feels<br />
entirely comfortable with oneself and<br />
with others,” Yiacouvakis points out.<br />
The ready-to-live in the mountains<br />
YH2 and Fraternité-sur-Lac’s concerted<br />
vision translated into an approach<br />
Yiacouvakis describes as “ready-to-live”,<br />
comparable to the ready-to-wear lines<br />
devised in the 1960s by haute couture<br />
fashion houses.<br />
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