Hemelwerk
In the rural landscape of Drenthe in the north of the Netherlands, Hemelwerk rises as a wooden structure that frames the sky. Constructed entirely from reclaimed spruce wood and traditional joinery techniques, the folly stands as a robust yet refined presence in the open field.
The project has no predefined function. From a distance, its profile recalls the roofs of barns, sheds, or bird hides. Yet as one approaches, this familiarity dissolves into ambiguity. The folly becomes a vessel for perception: a place to pause, to look upward through the open roof, or sideways through small shutters that capture fragments of the surroundings.
By limiting itself to structure, proportion, and detail, attention is shifted away from utility and more towards atmosphere. The timber, marked by reuse, carries its own memory, while the precision of the joinery lends permanence to what is otherwise temporary. Hemelwerk positions itself between architecture and sculpture, between utility and poetry. It is an object that invites stillness, amplifying the sounds of wind, leaves, and birds, and turning the ever-changing sky into its only decoration. Neither shelter nor monument, it is a frame for slowness and perception, where construction and landscape meet.
