Småbruk – a pocket farm in Nes | Scarcity and Creativity Studio (SCS)

As part of its long term strategic partnership with Nes Kommune SCS has designed a Pocket Farm development project consisting of four houses, an agricultural barn, and agricultural land where to grow food for the families. The intention is to lease or sell the sites to those who want to live in a rural setting and do a limited amount of agricultural activities, and yet be close enough to Oslo to be able to commute.In addition to the design of the four pocket farms SCS has built an agricultural barn that will be divided amongst the four residents and serve to store agricultural produce, machinery, and animals.Dystlandhaugen Farm, founded in the XVIII century, is currently owned by Terje and Elisabeth Maarud, who are the initiators of this project.

The design of the barn emerges from an extension of the undulating topography, which the building picks up and extends, generating the volume required by the functions of the barn. In order not to disturb the continuity of the topography, the the entrance doors are placed at the back in the space between the building and the woods. The greatest integration of the barn and the topography will occur in the autumn when the colour of the barley matches that of the cladding of the barn.

In pursuance of the integration of the barn to its landscape, the expression of the building envelope is highly muted, and consists of 23 x 36 mm treated softwood battens with 23 mm space between them through which one sees the black metal roofing sheets.It is in the interior that the envelope of the barn displays its structural articulation. The choice of OSB sheets as the main structural material was due to economic and ease of building reasons. The dimensions of the structural members reflect the fact that OSB is not a commonly used structural material. However, once commited to OSB we pursued the idea that it should perform all the functions required by the structure, without having to add other elements.The materials used in the building are OSB and untreated softwood for the structure, corrugated metal sheets in roof and walls, covered by treated, spaced, softwood battens.