Snøhetta turns Austrian cable car roof into alpine mirror

Snøhetta has completed a walkable reflecting pool on the roof of the Zugerbergbahn cable car station in Lech, Austria, designed to mirror the surrounding Alps and pause visitors mid-journey.

The installation, named Lech Mountain Mirror, sits in the Vorarlberg village of Lech. It comprises a shallow pool of water crossed by a series of striped stepping stones that lead up to a rock rising from the surface. The water reflects the surrounding mountains and clouds, and the image shifts with weather and time of day.

"The Lech Mountain Mirror transforms an infrastructure facility into a place for sensory experience," said Snøhetta partner Patrick Lüth. "It captures the magic of the mountains for visitors in an unusual way and offers opportunities to admire the mountain world from a different perspective."

The studio's Innsbruck office designed the lookout. According to Snøhetta, the changing conditions are integral to the design rather than a liability.

"The weather becomes part of the experience, constantly altering one's perception of the surroundings," the studio said. "On sunny, clear days, you see a precise reflection."

"When the wind blows, the reflection blurs, and the ripples on the water's surface create a new natural experience," it continued. "The reflections of mountains and sky, clouds and people merge into an image that changes with every breath of wind and every shift in light."

A green space and seating areas made from larch wood and stone boulders surround the lookout. Access is free.

Lech Mountain Mirror forms part of a broader cultural strategy for the region. Snøhetta said the installation is among several art initiatives under development in the area to boost summer tourism, including projects by artists Antony Gormley and James Turrell. The village currently relies on winter skiing, and the viewpoint is intended to help position Lech as a year-round destination.

The project extends a track record of alpine interventions by Snøhetta's Innsbruck office, which the firm's founders Kjetil Trædal Thorsen and Craig Dykers established after founding the studio in 1989. In the nearby Nordkette mountain range, the same office created the Path of Perspectives, a series of architectural interventions along a mountain walking trail completed in 2019.

If Gormley's and Turrell's projects proceed as planned, visitors will soon be able to route an entire summer itinerary through Lech around commissioned art in the landscape.