A PEACEFUL VIEW OF THE BREATHTAKING NATURE

Danish singer Tina Dickow and her husband, musician Helgi Jónsson, have built their dream house among the beautiful old spruces and the dense greenery of the Icelandic mountain. The grandeur of nature reminds them that they are only small pieces of a much greater narrative.

Forty-five minutes outside Reykjavik, by Iceland’s deepest and coldest lake, Þingvallavatn, lies a modern architect-made house tucked away in the undulating and verdant landscape. The house belongs to Danish singer and songwriter Tina Dickow, her husband – musician and composer Helgi Jónsson – and their three children. A house already stood on the ground when they bought it, but they dreamt of a house that would melt into the landscape while also opening out onto a panoramic view of the water. So, they decided to tear the house down and start from scratch.

One of the first things they did was to sneak up to the terrace of the house behind them to see what they could build without disturbing their neighbour’s view. The brief to the friend and architect they commissioned to design the house, Kristján Eggertsson, included a request that the house lie on a specific area of the ground and that it should preferably blend into the surrounding nature when viewed from above.

– Generally, we wanted to keep as many trees as possible. Trees grow very slowly in Iceland, and people joke that if you get lost in an Icelandic forest, all you have to do is stand up. So we cut down no more trees than absolutely necessary, and we still have far too little light on the terrace, simply because we love the tall spruces so much, says Tina.

Keeping trees, nature and landscape as untouched as possible and getting the house to blend in naturally with the surroundings were musts for constructing the new house and something Kristján Eggertsson integrated in his design.

– The building takes its shape from its surroundings at several levels. The concrete foundation of the wooden house is staggered at three levels that follow the slope of the landscape, and the green rooftop is angled to both match and oppose the incline of the terrain. The location has been picked with great care to integrate the building as best as possible with the surroundings and to frame select views toward the landscape, explains Kristján.

Besides having their friend design the house, Tina and Helgi had

their fathers’ help building the house. As the couple says, their gesture lives as a love in the walls. And they needed those extra hands, as they built the house over a 4-5-year period during which their careers were in full swing and they had three children.

– I still don’t get how it was possible. Especially, when you look at how much of the work Helgi did himself. He prepared the ground, a company built the shell and then the rest was up to us, says Tina, as Helgi adds:

– It has been quite a journey, from the moment I felled the first tree on the plot until we started digging. I had calculated that we needed to go a half-metre down to hit the mountain, but we ended up with a 3.5 metre deep hole! That was the start of an adventure filled with surprises, challenges, incredibly hard work, a wealth of sunrises and sunsets between the changing seasons and now a dream house that I look forward to seeing every day.

The house was originally planned as a summerhouse since they also have a home in Reykjavik. But now they use it year round as their second home. One of the things they love most about the place is the panoramic windows that open toward a pristine expanse of nature.

– Some of what fascinates the most about the view in Iceland is how the light and weather change hundreds of times every day. Whenever you look outside, the weather is different. First a storm brews over the lake, then the sun breaks through, then it hails a bit, then the light dances at the foot of the Ármann mountain, says Tina.

Living in nature means a great deal to both of them, and it inspires their creative work as musicians.

– Nature reminds you that you’re part of something bigger. The mountains we look out at are so ancient, calm and majestic and utterly unfazed by whatever problems we might have in our little lives. Tomorrow is a new day, they tell us. And so is 5,000 years from now for that matter. The volcano over there shaped this entire area 10,000 years ago. It really puts your daily life into perspective, says Helgi.

‘I don’t want a terrace facing the view. I don’t want to sit in the living room and look out at rarely used garden furniture. I would rather do everything to be

able to enjoy the undisturbed immensity from inside the house.’ Tina Dickow

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THE HOLLOW, as Tina Dickow calls the little sofa corner, is her favourite place in the house. This spot affords a view of the changing weather and the magnificence of nature. She also loves that people can sit wherever they want: on the stairs, on the edge, in the sofa. This creates a dynamic and vibrant space, she says. 67

68 TO THE NORTH, the house rises gently above the low scrubs to give an unobstructed view of Þingvallavatn and the mountain Skjaldbreið from the main space of the house. THE INTERIOR gives an impression of calm, with clean lines. It had to be a self-contained house without any need for adornment. Like nature itself. The kitchen is made by carpenters Culina.

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THE HOUSE is designed by the Danish/icelandic studio KRADS, managed by co-founding partner Kristján Eggertsson. It lies in the midst of a wild and primordial nature that Tina and Helgi have done everything to preserve. Although a few other houses have popped up in the nearby landscape, it is so overgrown as to be virtually impenetrable in places. And that is exactly how it should be if you ask the couple. 71

THE HOUSE has four different levels, a design that creates an interesting feeling of moving through a variety of ambiences and functions. The bedroom lies to the right of the kitchen and offers a front-row view. ON THE SOUTH-EAST SIDE OF THE HOUSE, the main space extends towards a terrace densely surrounded by trees. From here, you can just make out the Jórutindur and Hátindur mountains, while also getting a view through the house toward Þingvallavatn.

74 THE ARMCHAIR by the fireplace is actually Helgi’s favourite spot in the house, which Tina has now occupied. From here, you can keep warm while enjoying the view all the way from Ármann mountain and out over Hrafnabjörg and still be in contact with everyone in the room, whether they are cooking in the kitchen or sitting in the sofa or at the dining table. THE INTERIOR DESIGN is clean and minimalist throughout the house and kept in natural materials that underpin the sense of calm engendered by the world outside.

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