Visitor Center

It´s early morning. Your are driving towards the lagoon from the south-west. In the far distance, you can see where the glacier meets the mountains but you are never able to see the lagoon — a belt of drumlin is blocking it. To the south you observe the vast horizon where the black sand meets the North Atlantic ocean. You cross the bridge over the outlet of the lagoon where you get a quick overview over the lagoon for the first time. It´s extraordinary.

You make a left turn towards a parking lot that faces a large drumlin by the edge of the lagoon. You notice that the drumlin has been touched ­­— different roof structures pop up from the drumlin, working like lanterns in the dark. It is so mysterious but what is it? This is the service structure where you prepare yourself for the journey or where you conclude it.
Two concrete walls are punched into the drumlin, creating a passage and a forced view over the lagoon. The walls seperate the structure into to smaller volumes. Each volume has its own program and a roof structure that sits on a concrete foundation.
The roof structures are fragmented to let daylight and rain into the deep volumes but also to let out artificial light during the darkest hours. All of the roof structures have an inner layer of a fragmented skylights that focuses central light into the space. The ice bathing facility is the only exception of this grid, having a solid yet central skylight.
All of the volumes have gravel as floor that absorbs the water but it more importantly to strengthen the feeling of walking into the drumlin.
The bathing facility gives the visitor an opportunity to walk barefoot on the gravel, wash their feet in a hot water puddle and dip into a cold water as a physical recovery after their long journey.
The staircases in the passage split the program into levels, emphasizing the activity of people climbing the drumlin as well as building up anticipation among the visitors.

Status: Academic Project - Master Thesis (1st structure)