Building as a rock

The Dachstein glacier, a 2700m high mountain in the Austrian region of Styria, offers one of the most spectacular broad views over the Alps. 250m below the top of this steep, rocky massive, in the eternal snow, a tiny make-shift hut was offering a shelter for the climbers. It was called Seethalerhütte after its former host, running the place for half a century. 

In 2016, a competition was held for its replacement. Dreiplus Architekten ZT GmbH won it with a modest, yet powerful concept of a building blending seamlessly into the surrounding rocks. The architects, Stephan Hoinkes and Thomas Heil, wanted to keep the character of a mountain shelter, as in opposition to panorama-restaurants designed for the needs of mass tourism. The construction started in the summer of 2017 with casting of underground concrete floors. On Christmas 2018 the hut opened.

The architects did extensive research on the similar projects already constructed and as a result, decided to keep things as simple as possible: standard window formats, handles, and most rational construction details. The roof windows are mounted in the facade according to the usual VELUX detailing, slightly protruding in front of the surface. The result of a technical decision creates a great shadow play in the sun.

The facade, as well as the external part of the window frames, are made out of raw zinc. There is no varnish that would prevent ageing, as the aim was to achieve a monolithic look.