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Snorre Stinessen's Narvik Gondola Station emerges from the alpine snowscape as a striking geometric intervention, its dark vertical cladding creating profound chromatic contrast against the pristine…

Narvik Gondola Station Gondola by Snorre Stinessen is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2020 Golden A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Competition Category.


GoldArchitecture· 2020

Narvik Gondola Station Gondola

by Snorre Stinessen

Client: Narvikfjellet

Golden A' Design Award Winner in Architecture Category

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The Design

About Narvik Gondola Station Gondola

Narvik Gondola Station is the mountain top station of a gondola line at a ski resort above the city of Narvik, Norway. The station offers a sheltered space where visitors and skiers board and leave the gondola, and it organises the flow of people. The building is 41 metres long and 15 to 26 metres wide, with a steel frame and reinforced concrete foundations. Matte black metal cladding refers to the local iron ore industry, while wood is used in the interiors. The shape was optimised for strong wind and heavy snow loads.

The Recognition

About the Golden A' Design Award

Narvik Gondola Station Gondola is a Golden A' Design Award winner, an immensely prestigious recognition granted to first-rate, marvelous, and outstanding designs. Golden winners are exceedingly innovative, visionary, and glamorously dazzling creations that reflect the prodigy, wisdom, and prowess of their designers. Narvik Gondola Station Gondola is expected to be a highly praised, trendsetting, and monumental invention that delivers unprecedented value. This Golden A' Design Award-winning design is a spectacular, respected project that highly benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Narvik Gondola Station Gondola creates intense feelings of desire, evokes passion, encourages creativity, and fascinates us.

Where to Get It

Award-Winning Arctic Architecture Services

We design transformative architectural projects that embrace Northern challenges. Our holistic approach integrates buildings, landscapes, and interiors to create award-winning spaces. From mountain resorts to private residences, we bring Nordic innovation to every project.

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Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties
The Narvik top station is the mountain top station for the new gondola on the top point of the ski slopes in Narvikfjellet, a ski resort directly above the Narvik city centre and characterised by one of the steepest height to length ratios - from a 1000 meter above sea level down to the sea, offering some amazing scenery with the view out the Ofoten fiord to the World Heritage area of Lofoten.
Dimensions & Packaging
Length: 41m
Width: 15-26m
Top height above average terrain: 12m
Tags
gondola, topstation, skiresort, narvik, narvikfjellet, alpineresort, skiing
Production Technology
The construction planning focused on optimising shape, construction and materials against heavy wind force and snow loads. Steel frame construction. Reinforced concrete foundations. Matte black metal cladding.
Design Challenge
Optimisation of the combination of gondola requirements and natural forces to be accounted for.
Research
Optimal positioning of gondola cable line, specific bottom and top station location as seen in connection with complete slopes, flow of people and overall organisation of resort. Climatic conditions, wind forces, snow loads and snow drift patterns. Functional requirements (visitors, skiers, technical requirements). Structure optimisation, shape and minimising material usage.
Inspiration
The design forms part of the overall design philosophy of the Narvik Arctic Resort which seeks to express a connection between the city's industrial history and the surrounding dramatic nature. Narvik is shipping-port for the rail and ship transportation of iron ore, represented in the black metal cladding and shaping of the buildings of the resort and the forested mountains represented in the wooden interiors.
Project Duration
Built during fall of 2018, opened for the 2019 winter season in Narvik, Norway.
Operation Flow
The structure is tailor made to gondola specifications and also climatic conditions, while at the same time adhering to the overall design strategy of the resort. It provides safe landing at the top of the mountain for the gondolas with visitors and skiers exiting or boarding the gondola in a sheltered space which also organise the traffic flow of people.
Team Members
Snorre Stinessen
Emanuela Bonardi
Image Credits
Rune Dahl - photos

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