Wood and Mountain Cabin by Thai Architectural Design Studio "Sher Maker"

Small Cabin from “Wood and Mountain” and “If I were a carpenter” brand located in a quiet place in Mae Rim district, Chiang Mai welcomes travelers in to the middle of nowhere atmosphere. Thailand based studio "Sher Maker" was in charge of the project's  architectural design. Sher Maker is a member of ASA (The Association of Siamese Architects under Royal Patronage) which ADF has been developed a close relationship with as its partner organization.

The cabin consists of bathroom, living room, pantry and terrace on the 1st floor, and the bedroom on the 2nd floor. The exterior of the building cladding with 3 sides wooden wall for privacy, leaving opening one side only to the balcony that faces the gorgeous mountain view.

The owner and design team agreed on the language of building supposed to be a wooden building, because this material directly relates to the owner as a furniture maker. The choice of wood gave them the option to collect used wood which could be found in Chaing Mai. Form of the building was designed by simple order of steel structure referenced to the wooden house wall system commonly seen in the northern Thailand. Architecture language influence from vernacular architecture, the project takes shape as a simple wooden structure opening up to the surrounding vegetation. Cladding exterior wall panel consists of used wood from various sources in Chiang Mai. Sorting and sanding wooden surface and reusing it again by burning each plank and assembling it to the new wall, the life circle of the material is re-used and is considered to bring out the specific meaning of materials and processes that make it stand out. In addition that burning wooden surface method to preserving the wood which is the knowledge from the traditional Japanese technique "shou-sugi ban",  it is also a blend of old wood that comes from a variety of sources to bring it merge together. In other words the method to adapt to the physical characteristics of local Thai wood, which is more resistant to weather conditions than woods that are imported from abroad.

Sher Maker is a small studio with strong intentions to work on method of architecture through the building language that they really intend. With the intention of designing the part of the building so that the builder in local area can use the normal construction system so that the architecture is expressed by human hands. In order to do so, the studio's workshop area was used as an experimental area for mock-up work and wall mock-up to collect samples and material information. Using wood burners for them was not just about seeking and bringing that kind of aesthetic without context of the material significant but it’s about understanding the material and making it by them self. As they intend to leave the imperfections in each shade of burning wood plank to symbolize this building is the work of architecture by human hands (Human expression).