KENNISIS LAKE

The folding, wing-like roof planes of Kennisis Lake Cottage are stretched out over a heavy timber skeleton appearing to hover over an existing glacial stone, lifted by breezes off the lake. These series of roofs are pinned down to the site by the mass of three stone fireplaces. The organic architecture, primordial in nature, recalls the history of site and the rituals and traditions of cottaging in Ontario.

Separate intimate spaces accommodating multiple families are connected by voluminous gathering spaces, providing challenges and opportunities for acoustic and visual relationships between spaces. A series of stepped terraces extend the building seamlessly into the landscape and provide outdoor gathering amenities.

Natural materials and locally sourced products such as granite, heavy timber, cedar shingles and wood siding allow the structure to appear like it had grown out of, and belongs to the forest and rock that it hovers over. Heating is provided through a radiant in-floor lake loop geothermal system.