- Project: Two Sisters Holiday Home
- Architect: MNY Arkitekter
- Location: Finland, Salo
- Year: 2023
- Area: 131 m2
- Photography: Multifoto AB
A Holiday Retreat for Two Families, Together & Apart
Nestled on a rocky, forested site overlooking the sea near Salo, southern Finland, Two Sisters Holiday Home by MNY Arkitekter is designed to host two siblings and their families in a celebration of togetherness and autonomy. The motto is “together separately”—two distinct units sharing auxiliary and social spaces—each carving its own connection to land, view, and light.
The villa is integrated sensitively into the site, preserving pine trees, framing sea vistas, and respecting the raw terrain. Its fan-shaped plan, timber character, and split volumes embody both intimacy and openness.
Spatial Strategy & Programmatic Duality
The architectural concept divides the home into two primary units, each accommodating one family, while sharing certain communal elements and terraces. They fan outward from a central spine that threads between them, allowing visual dialogue without intrusion.
Rather than a single monolithic block, the design visually fragments into four smaller volumes of varying height, reducing scale and enhancing rhythm. The layout ensures both equity and privacy: sightlines are managed so that each family feels connected yet discreet.
An existing overnight shelter on the plot is sensitively integrated into the plan, physically and visually tied into the fan layout, making the design feel coherent—a home grown from site history.
Material Expression & Construction
The home rests on a prefabricated 180 mm log frame, clad with vertical spruce boarding treated with silicon for durability. All interior surfaces—walls, ceilings—were given a lye treatment to lighten tones, complementing terra-cotta stone tile flooring in circulation zones.
Exposed roof beams, black fireplaces, and fixed dark furniture introduce contrast and sculptural depth. Materials were chosen not just for aesthetics but resilience—log frame efficiency, timber aging gracefully, and environmental performance embedded.
Light, Connection & Atmosphere
Large glazed façades allow generous daylight and panoramic views, while interior volumes maintain a visual flow between units. From one window seat, you might catch a glimpse into the sibling’s domain; otherwise, the architecture ensures subtle separation.
Natural ventilation, underfloor heating, and log construction offer comfort and sustainability. The trajectory through the home is one of layered experiences—forest shadows, sea light, timber textures—drawing inhabitants into a quiet coexistence with nature.
A Dual Narrative in Timber & Terrain
Two Sisters Holiday Home / MNY Arkitekter / Finland is architecture as both home and dialogue. It honors family connection and personal space through form, material, and site response. By splitting volumes, weaving functions, and respecting landscape, the project becomes more than a holiday house: it is a sculptural, living framework for relational living in the Finnish forest.
