Scandinavian Design

We love the refined Scandinavian design aesthetic of this wonderfully composed modern house in Sweden. The No. 5 House was created by architect/design team of Claesson Koivisto Rune (architects Mårten Claesson, Eero Koivisto, Ola Rune, Deta Gemzell) in the town of Saltsjö-Boo, Sweden. Although the house was completed almost ten years ago, it always feels good to revisit it. The starting point for this house for a graphic designer (he designed the No. 5 sign) and his family was a geometric volume where the inside was as important as the outside. If you wish – an inverted volume. A box with a series of openings, or a space with a series of closures.

A grid was established that was based on standardized dimensions for building materials. The grid was then superimposed on the box. From this grid was created the basic room structure. Each room then had one of it’s four sides completely glazed. The result contained three bedrooms and one larger living/dining space with kitchen. The bedrooms are basically open towards one cardinal point each, leaving one opening in each facade. So even though the bedrooms are small the surrounding landscape is always a part of the space, making the sense vast rather than small. The bathroom, which has no wall opening, has a roof window instead. There is a glazed doorway from the living area to a partially walled terrace, creating an outdoor room that is open to the sky at one end and open to the view at the other.

The house features several icons of modern design including the Eero Saarinen Womb Chair and Ottoman, the Eero Kolvisto & Ola Rune Brasilia Table and the Arne Jacobsen AJ Floor Lamp.