A-101

Hytte Ulriken — axonometric, equinox sun study

Houses that
hold light.

Oda is a fourteen-person studio in Bergen. We draw timber houses, cabins and small civic buildings for a coast where the sun arrives low, late and sideways — and we place every window around it.

+43.0+41.012 0006 000±0.000+2.900+6.200RIDGEFFLSTANDING-SEAM ZINC, 47°LIME-RENDERED CHIMNEYOAK-FRAMED TRIPLEGLAZING, 2.2 × 4.1 MHEAT-TREATED PINE22 × 48 BATTENS, C/C 3001234N
  1. Standing-seam zinc, 47°
  2. Lime-rendered chimney
  3. Oak-framed triple glazing 2.2 × 4.1 m
  4. Heat-treated pine 22 × 48 battens, c/c 300

10:40alt --° · az ---°
+43.0+41.012 0006 000±0.000+2.900+6.200RIDGEFFLSTANDING-SEAM ZINC, 47°LIME-RENDERED CHIMNEYOAK-FRAMED TRIPLEGLAZING, 2.2 × 4.1 MHEAT-TREATED PINE22 × 48 BATTENS, C/C 3001234N
  1. Standing-seam zinc, 47°
  2. Lime-rendered chimney
  3. Oak-framed triple glazing 2.2 × 4.1 m
  4. Heat-treated pine 22 × 48 battens, c/c 300

10:40alt --° · az ---°
+43.0+41.012 0006 000±0.000+2.900+6.200RIDGEFFLSTANDING-SEAM ZINC, 47°LIME-RENDERED CHIMNEYOAK-FRAMED TRIPLEGLAZING, 2.2 × 4.1 MHEAT-TREATED PINE22 × 48 BATTENS, C/C 3001234N
  1. Standing-seam zinc, 47°
  2. Lime-rendered chimney
  3. Oak-framed triple glazing 2.2 × 4.1 m
  4. Heat-treated pine 22 × 48 battens, c/c 300

10:40alt --° · az ---°

Project

Hytte Ulriken

Client

Private

Sheet

A-101

Drawing

Axo + shadow

Scale

1:50

Revision

C

Date

24.09.26

Drawn

O.K.

Checked

H.S.

Status

For comment

Area

72 m²

(01) Studio

On light, weather and timber

Sheet A-201

(01) Studio

Sheet A-201

(01) Studio

On light, weather and timber

Sheet A-201

Est. 2011
Bergen, Vestland

Est. 2011
Bergen, Vestland

What we believe

We start with the window, not the façade. In Bergen it rains most days, and when the sun does come it arrives low and sideways, so every opening has to earn its place. We draw by hand before we draw by machine. We build in timber because it weathers honestly. And we stay on site until the last batten is fixed — that is where a drawing finally becomes a house.

We start with the window, not the façade. In Bergen it rains most days, and when the sun does come it arrives low and sideways, so every opening has to earn its place. We draw by hand before we draw by machine. We build in timber because it weathers honestly. And we stay on site until the last batten is fixed — that is where a drawing finally becomes a house.

We start with the window, not the façade. In Bergen it rains most days, and when the sun does come it arrives low and sideways, so every opening has to earn its place. We draw by hand before we draw by machine. We build in timber because it weathers honestly. And we stay on site until the last batten is fixed — that is where a drawing finally becomes a house.

61
61

Buildings completed
since 2011

14
14

People at one
long table

212
212

Wet days a year
in Bergen, on average

1:20
1:20

The scale we draw
bedrooms at

(02) Selected work

2023 — 2027 · six of sixty-one

Sheets A-301 → 306

(02) Selected work

Sheets A-301 → 306

(02) Selected work

2023 — 2027 · six of sixty-one

Sheets A-301 → 306

Six sheets from the plan chest.

Every project has one drawing we keep coming back to. These are those drawings. Keep scrolling to leaf through them.

Completed

On site

In design

Competition

A-301

West elevation

1:100

A-301

West elevation

1:100

15 800+62.400+59.600+57.100WEST ELEVATION

Project

Hus Fjellveien

Place

Bergen, Vestland

Year

2025

Area

164 m²

Status

Completed

A-302

Section A–A

1:50

A-302

Section A–A

1:50

±0.0 MSLHW +1.26 800SECTION A–ALOFT — NETS, OARSSLIPWAY, SLATE

Project

Naustet på Sotra

Place

Sotra, Øygarden

Year

2024

Area

58 m²

Status

Completed

A-303

Ground floor plan

1:200

A-303

Ground floor plan

1:200

ABCDEF1234STACKSREADING ROOMSTAFFENTRANCE — FROM THE QUAYVIEW

Project

Kvam Library

Place

Norheimsund, Kvam

Year

2026

Area

820 m²

Status

On site

A-304

Axonometric, from south-east

1:50

A-304

Axonometric, from south-east

1:50

AXONOMETRIC, FROM SOUTH-EASTSNOW LOAD 5.5 kN/m²1 222 M A.S.L.

Project

Hytte Finse

Place

Finse, 1 222 m a.s.l.

Year

2023

Area

42 m²

Status

Completed

A-305

Site plan

1:500

A-305

Site plan

1:500

+5+10+15+20+25EXISTING1962COURTF J Æ R L A N D S F J O R D E NNEW — 1 140 m²050 MN

Project

Fjærland School

Place

Fjærland, Sogn

Year

2027

Area

1 140 m²

Status

In design

A-306

East elevation

1:100

A-306

East elevation

1:100

HORIZON — BØMLAFJORDEN12 400+11.200EAST ELEVATIONLARCH, GLULAM

Project

Tårnet, Stord

Place

Stord, Sunnhordland

Year

2027

Area

12 m²

Status

1st prize

Scroll to leaf through

01 / 06

(03) Process

How a house gets drawn

Sheet A-401

(03) Process

Sheet A-401

(03) Process

How a house gets drawn

Sheet A-401

Four phases. One sheet, redrawn until it’s right.

Four phases. One sheet, redrawn until it’s right.

Here is Hytte Ulriken, the cabin at the top of this page, as it came together. Most of the work happens before a single wall is drawn.

Here is Hytte Ulriken, the cabin at the top of this page, as it came together. Most of the work happens before a single wall is drawn.

NBRIEF — 12.02.2025Two adults, one dog, ~3 000 books.“We want to watch the weather arrive.”Morning coffee in the sun. Always.SUN PATH, EQUINOXSW · WETVIEW — FJORD+45+44+43+41+40ROCKBIRCH — KEEPBIRCHPINEPLACED BETWEENTWO BIRCHESPATH FROM THE ROADBATHBED · 12.4 m²STORELIVING · KITCHEN · 46 m²DECKSTOVE~3 000 BOOKS12 0004 0008 0006 000APPROVED FOR SITEREV C · 03.2026 · O.K.

01

Listen · 2–3 weeks

Listen

Listen

We visit before we draw anything. Two conversations at your kitchen table, then a long walk around the site in whatever weather it has that day. We write down how you live, not what you think the house should look like.

You get

A written brief, in your words

We keep

A notebook, a compass, wet boots

02

Site · 3–4 weeks

Site

Site

We measure the light before the land. Sun paths, prevailing wind, where the snow drifts, which birches stay. The house is placed long before it is shaped — this one sits between two trees that were there first.

You get

Survey, sun study, placement

Trees felled

0

03

Draw · 8–14 weeks

Draw

Draw

Plans, sections, then card and pine models on the long table. We draw the room you’ll wake up in at 1:20, because that is where the big decisions hide: the sill height, the view from the pillow, the first light.

You get

Sketch → permit drawings

Models

Usually three. Once, eleven.

04

Build · 6–14 months

Build

Build

We work with builders we’ve built with before, and we’re on site every week. Details get resolved with a carpenter’s pencil on a plank, then redrawn properly the same evening.

You get

Tender, site follow-up, handover

We keep

An offcut from every house

(04) Materials library

Samples from the shelf by the window

Sheet A-501

(04) Materials library

Sheet A-501

(04) Materials library

Samples from the shelf by the window

Sheet A-501

Six materials we trust with the weather.

Six materials we trust with the weather.

We keep the list short. Everything on it can be repaired, ages without apology and comes from as close to the site as we can manage. Zinc is the exception, and we’re working on it.

We keep the list short. Everything on it can be repaired, ages without apology and comes from as close to the site as we can manage. Zinc is the exception, and we’re working on it.

M-01

Heat-treated pine

Luster · 22 × 148 mm

Baked at 212 °C until it stops drinking water. It goes silver in about three winters. We let it.

Origin

Luster sawmill, 190 km

For

Cladding, soffits, decks

Lasts

60 years and counting

M-01

Heat-treated pine

Luster · 22 × 148 mm

Baked at 212 °C until it stops drinking water. It goes silver in about three winters. We let it.

Origin

Luster sawmill, 190 km

For

Cladding, soffits, decks

Lasts

60 years and counting

M-01

Heat-treated pine

Luster · 22 × 148 mm

Baked at 212 °C until it stops drinking water. It goes silver in about three winters. We let it.

Origin

Luster sawmill, 190 km

For

Cladding, soffits, decks

Lasts

60 years and counting

M-02

Otta slate

Gudbrandsdalen · split, 30 mm

Quarried in pieces, laid in pieces, so it can be mended in pieces. We use it wherever boots and water meet.

Origin

Otta, 330 km

For

Thresholds, hearths, plinths

Lasts

A century, give or take

M-02

Otta slate

Gudbrandsdalen · split, 30 mm

Quarried in pieces, laid in pieces, so it can be mended in pieces. We use it wherever boots and water meet.

Origin

Otta, 330 km

For

Thresholds, hearths, plinths

Lasts

A century, give or take

M-02

Otta slate

Gudbrandsdalen · split, 30 mm

Quarried in pieces, laid in pieces, so it can be mended in pieces. We use it wherever boots and water meet.

Origin

Otta, 330 km

For

Thresholds, hearths, plinths

Lasts

A century, give or take

M-03

Lime render

Hot-mixed on site

It breathes, cracks a little, heals itself a little. Over the years it turns back into stone, which we find reassuring.

Origin

Local sand, Nordic lime

For

Chimneys, wet rooms

Lasts

Limewash every decade

M-03

Lime render

Hot-mixed on site

It breathes, cracks a little, heals itself a little. Over the years it turns back into stone, which we find reassuring.

Origin

Local sand, Nordic lime

For

Chimneys, wet rooms

Lasts

Limewash every decade

M-03

Lime render

Hot-mixed on site

It breathes, cracks a little, heals itself a little. Over the years it turns back into stone, which we find reassuring.

Origin

Local sand, Nordic lime

For

Chimneys, wet rooms

Lasts

Limewash every decade

M-04

Undyed wool

Voss · felt, 8 mm

Door pulls, acoustic panels, the bench by the stove. It absorbs sound, damp and the smell of wet dogs, in that order.

Origin

Voss, 100 km

For

Acoustics, upholstery

Lasts

As long as it’s sat on

M-04

Undyed wool

Voss · felt, 8 mm

Door pulls, acoustic panels, the bench by the stove. It absorbs sound, damp and the smell of wet dogs, in that order.

Origin

Voss, 100 km

For

Acoustics, upholstery

Lasts

As long as it’s sat on

M-04

Undyed wool

Voss · felt, 8 mm

Door pulls, acoustic panels, the bench by the stove. It absorbs sound, damp and the smell of wet dogs, in that order.

Origin

Voss, 100 km

For

Acoustics, upholstery

Lasts

As long as it’s sat on

M-05

White oak

Hardanger · quarter-sawn

Floors, sills, stair treads, handrails: anything a hand or a foot touches every day. It gets better with every one of them.

Origin

Kvam, 80 km

For

Floors, joinery, sills

Lasts

Generations

M-05

White oak

Hardanger · quarter-sawn

Floors, sills, stair treads, handrails: anything a hand or a foot touches every day. It gets better with every one of them.

Origin

Kvam, 80 km

For

Floors, joinery, sills

Lasts

Generations

M-05

White oak

Hardanger · quarter-sawn

Floors, sills, stair treads, handrails: anything a hand or a foot touches every day. It gets better with every one of them.

Origin

Kvam, 80 km

For

Floors, joinery, sills

Lasts

Generations

M-06

Standing-seam zinc

Pre-weathered · 0.7 mm

For roofs that face the south-westerlies. Quiet in the rain, if you detail it properly. We detail it properly.

Origin

The one thing we import

For

Roofs, flashings

Lasts

80–100 years

M-06

Standing-seam zinc

Pre-weathered · 0.7 mm

For roofs that face the south-westerlies. Quiet in the rain, if you detail it properly. We detail it properly.

Origin

The one thing we import

For

Roofs, flashings

Lasts

80–100 years

M-06

Standing-seam zinc

Pre-weathered · 0.7 mm

For roofs that face the south-westerlies. Quiet in the rain, if you detail it properly. We detail it properly.

Origin

The one thing we import

For

Roofs, flashings

Lasts

80–100 years

Hover, focus or tap a sample for where it comes from

(05) Recognition

Awards, press, the occasional kind word

Sheet A-601

(05) Recognition

Sheet A-601

(05) Recognition

Awards, press, the occasional kind word

Sheet A-601

Some kind words, carefully filed.

Some kind words, carefully filed.

Year

Recognition

Project

Result

2026

Stord Viewing Tower competition

Open competition, 64 entries

Tårnet

1st prize

2026

Vestland Timber Prize

Public buildings category

Kvam Library

Shortlist

2025

Nordlys Daylight Award

For a house that “reads the sky”

Hus Fjellveien

Winner

2025

Arkitektur Nord, issue 88

“The houses that wait for the sun” — studio profile

Studio

Press

2024

Hordaland Craft Council

Honour for timber detailing

Naustet på Sotra

Honour

2024

Small Buildings Biennale

Selected for the exhibition in Aarhus

Hytte Finse

Selected

2023

Bergen Building Council Prize

Housing under 200 m²

Nøstet Townhouses

Winner

2022

Fjord & Form

Cover feature, winter issue

Hus Kalvedalen

Press

2026

Stord Viewing Tower competition

Open competition, 64 entries

Tårnet

1st prize

2026

Vestland Timber Prize

Public buildings category

Kvam Library

Shortlist

2025

Nordlys Daylight Award

For a house that “reads the sky”

Hus Fjellveien

Winner

2025

Arkitektur Nord, issue 88

“The houses that wait for the sun” — studio profile

Studio

Press

2024

Hordaland Craft Council

Honour for timber detailing

Naustet på Sotra

Honour

2024

Small Buildings Biennale

Selected for the exhibition in Aarhus

Hytte Finse

Selected

2023

Bergen Building Council Prize

Housing under 200 m²

Nøstet Townhouses

Winner

2022

Fjord & Form

Cover feature, winter issue

Hus Kalvedalen

Press

(06) People

Architects, interiors, one model maker

Sheet A-701

(06) People

Sheet A-701

(06) People

Architects, interiors, one model maker

Sheet A-701

Fourteen people, one long table.

Fourteen people, one long table.

No corner offices. Partners draw, graduates present, and everyone takes a turn on the Friday site visit — rain included, which is to say always.

No corner offices. Partners draw, graduates present, and everyone takes a turn on the Friday site visit — rain included, which is to say always.

Oda Kvalheim

Founding partner · Architect

2011

On: Tårnet

Oda Kvalheim

Founding partner · Architect

2011

On: Tårnet

Henrik Sæbø

Partner · Architect

2013

On: Kvam Library

Henrik Sæbø

Partner · Architect

2013

On: Kvam Library

Nora Halvorsen

Studio manager

2012

On: everything

Nora Halvorsen

Studio manager

2012

On: everything

Emil Fosse

Workshop & models

2014

On: model no. 11

Emil Fosse

Workshop & models

2014

On: model no. 11

Signe Thorsen

Interiors lead

2015

On: Hus Fjellveien

Signe Thorsen

Interiors lead

2015

On: Hus Fjellveien

Jonas Eide

Project architect

2016

On: Fjærland School

Jonas Eide

Project architect

2016

On: Fjærland School

Aksel Brekke

Timber structures

2017

On: Tårnet

Aksel Brekke

Timber structures

2017

On: Tårnet

Maren Lie

Architect

2018

On: Hytte Ulriken

Maren Lie

Architect

2018

On: Hytte Ulriken

Live Nygård

Interior architect

2019

On: Kvam Library

Live Nygård

Interior architect

2019

On: Kvam Library

Tobias Rønneberg

Architect

2020

On: Fjærland School

Tobias Rønneberg

Architect

2020

On: Fjærland School

Ylva Hopland

Landscape architect

2021

On: the birches

Ylva Hopland

Landscape architect

2021

On: the birches

Astrid Vik

Architect

2022

On: Hytte Ulriken

Astrid Vik

Architect

2022

On: Hytte Ulriken

Sindre Aasen

Architect

2023

On: Naustet II

Sindre Aasen

Architect

2023

On: Naustet II

Kaja Myklebust

Graduate architect

2025

On: the plotter

Kaja Myklebust

Graduate architect

2025

On: the plotter

Year = when they joined · hover a name to see what’s on their desk

Year = when they joined · hover a name to see what’s on their desk

(07) Contact

New projects, press, studio visits

Sheet A-801

(07) Contact

Sheet A-801

(07) Contact

New projects, press, studio visits

Sheet A-801

Let’s draw
something.

Sketch pad · HB
Sheet A-801 · Scale: whatever feels right0 strokes

Studio

Sjøbodgaten 14, 5003 Bergen

Third floor, the door with the brass handle

Hours

Mon–Fri, 08:30–16:30

Coffee from 08:00

We reply within two working days, usually with questions. Drew something? Download it and send it along when we write back.

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