Schemata Architects Links Irish Rainforest Guesthouse with Solar Sawtooth Roof

A timber-and-steel sawtooth roof that generates its own electricity now joins two stone buildings at Linden House, a guesthouse in Dromgarriff Rainforest, Ireland, renovated by Japanese studio Schemata Architects.

The guesthouse sits in Glengarriff, on 39 hectares of woodland that count among Ireland's last temperate rainforests and hold protected ecological status. New owners bought the site in 2022 and started conserving and rewilding the forest, funded partly by turning its five existing guesthouses into a wellness retreat.

Schemata redesigned one of them, connecting two stone-and-slate buildings overlooking Bantry Bay with a new yoga space shared by the guesthouse's 10 bedrooms.

How do you connect two buildings that don't align?

The starting point was a quirk. "The existing buildings consisted of two structures connected by a passageway," Schemata Architects founder Jo Nagasaka told Dezeen. "We envisioned extending this passage toward the south and transforming it into a yoga facility for the retreat centre."

The two wings sit at an angle to each other, and the studio leaned into the misalignment rather than correcting it. "By connecting them while embracing this twisted relationship we were able to create a distinctive spatial experience and form," Nagasaka explained.

The yoga studio occupies the gap. Exposed stone walls frame it on either side, and the hybrid sawtooth roof spans the space with integrated skylights.

What does the sawtooth roof actually do?

It works twice. "The most distinctive element is the hybrid sawtooth roof, which integrates daylighting and power generation," Nagasaka said. "The north-facing surfaces bring in indirect daylight, while solar panels are installed on the south-facing surfaces to generate electricity from direct sunlight."

It's a textbook move, executed with unusual clarity: light from the north, power from the south, nothing wasted on ornament.

How are the 10 bedrooms arranged?

The layout splits across the two existing volumes:

• The longer western volume holds the social spaces on its ground floor, stepping down into a large living area with a fully-glazed gable end facing the bay.
• Three ensuite bedrooms occupy the northern end of this volume, with three more beneath timber-framed gable ceilings on its first floor.
• The smaller eastern wing contains the remaining four bedrooms, the largest with a double-height seating area and a matching glazed gable end toward the water.

Which materials tie the project to the forest?

The finishes answer directly to the site's original materials: timber in the yoga studio, pale oak in the bedrooms and living spaces, and minimalist white tiles in the bathrooms.

The species choice was deliberate. "For the new timber elements, we chose oak, the same species of tree that is native to the surrounding forest, wherever possible," Nagasaka said. "In doing so, we sought to create a connection between the architecture and the natural resources and character of the site."

The photography is by Alexander Baxter unless otherwise stated.

What comes next for the site?

Linden House opens a longer relationship. Schemata Architects' long-term plans for the site include the possible reconstruction of a hotel that once stood there, making this guesthouse the first move in a much larger board.

The studio's other recent work includes a Tokyo store for perfume company Le Labo with board-marked concrete walls, and an office in Fujisawa City fronted by oversized corrugated metal shutters.