Mökki Santara House / Carla Gertz

Architects: Carla Gertz
Area: 105 m²
Year: 2017
Manufacturers: Holzbau Marco Greis, Masjosthusmann, Tischlerei Berg, Wolfgang Steinmetz
Municipality: Savitaipale
Country: Finland

Mökki Santara residential project in Karelia, Finland reinterprets the Finnish Mökki tradition by separating living and utility spaces into two volumes. Designed with local spruce timber and built using prefabricated construction, the architecture prioritizes essential functions and regional materials. The elevated platform opens toward Lake Santara, with the exterior rendered as black monoliths and the interior composed of untreated wood. Clean detailing and environmental integration define this eight-week construction as a quiet and precise retreat within Finland’s remote forest landscape.

“The Finnish affinity with nature demands a counterbalance to the everyday apartment: the summer cottage or Mökki. It is quite true to say the Finnish live their real life in their cottage,” said Tapio Periäinen, director of the Finnish Society of Crafts and Design.

The Finnish term “Mökki” defines a modest cottage by the lake – often isolated and surrounded only by nature. It represents a cultural retreat, stripped of luxury and reduced to essential living, serving as a bridge between urban routines and a rural, nature-bound lifestyle. Mökki Santara is one such retreat, located deep within Karelia, far from Helsinki, in a landscape of forest and lakes.

Designed according to traditional spatial principles, Mökki Santara divides its functions into two separate volumes: one for living, one for cleaning. These buildings are slightly raised on a shared platform that faces southwest toward Lake Santara. In form, the black, simplified structures resemble archetypal monoliths, offering a restrained yet contemporary take on the Mökki typology. While the exterior maintains a heavy, abstract quality, the interior reveals a light-filled space defined by untreated whitewashed wood. Kitchen, living, and sleeping areas flow into one another through subtle transitions, organized without doors or partitions but instead by the rhythm of surfaces and scale.

The design strategy emphasized a site-specific approach. All spruce timber was locally sourced and dried on site. This material provides both aesthetic continuity and thermal comfort, even during winter temperatures that can reach -30°C (-22°F).

Construction was carried out over eight weeks through the use of prefabricated timber components. Structural frames, windows, doors, and built-in furniture were all manufactured in advance and assembled by a skilled team of craftsmen. The timber siding, beveled and continuous, extends across the walls and roof, forming a cohesive envelope. Hidden waterproofing layers lie beneath the wooden skin, preserving the clarity of the volume. Details remain minimal and integrated, including flush-mounted storage and seamless eaves and verges, emphasizing precision and abstraction throughout the design.

Inside, architecture and furnishings merge into a unified whole. Every connection, joint, and transition supports the sense of spatial calm and structural coherence. Mökki Santara stands as an example of how traditional forms and local materials can be reinterpreted through precise construction and thoughtful restraint, offering a modest yet enduring place within the Finnish landscape.