Every December since 1990, 1,000 tons of ice block and more than one million cubic feet of snow/ice mixture are taken from Sweden's Torne River and stacked and carved to create the rooms, lobby, bar, and church of Icehotel, the Arctic Circle resort where the temp hovers at a decidedly less-than-tropical 23 degrees. Like other massive pieces of ice architecture—or teeny ice dioramas, for that matter—Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi, Sweden, develops the artistry of the frozen form, combing through around 250 applications every year from designers, artists, and architects who want to create one of the hotel's theme suites. Above: the Beam Me Up suite, an alien-abduction-themed room by Swedish design firm PinPin, which features columns of ice beams dropping from snowy flying saucers, a soft forest landscape on the walls, and some strategic UFO glow. The pièce de résistance: a headboard topped with a spacecraft, with lighting imbedded all the way to the foot of the ice-block bed. More below.
For this project, the designers at PinPin—a studio that specializes in "child culture design"—wantedto create a space that was easily recognized, a universal fantasy steeped in mystery and lore: They write: "The UFO myth is scary in the tickling way, and at the same time very captivating. The concept is all about giving the visitor an ice cold encounter with the unknown. We are inviting you to a supernatural experience that triggers your imagination and creates curiosity for what we can't really understand." More photos, below.
· Beam Me Up! [PinPin.se]
· 12 World-Renowned Buildings Whittled From Frozen H2O [Curbed National]
· Gorgeous, Detailed Dioramas Come to Life—in a Freezer [Curbed National]