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ARCHITECTURE
Atelier L'Abri
STYLING
Emmanuelle Roque
PHOTOGRAPHY
Alex Lesage
Nicolas Lapierre
EDITOR
Gina
Collection

Magdalen House establishes a thoughtful relationship with the coastline of the Magdalen Islands and the vernacular forms that define this archipelago in Quebec. The small building rests on a natural plateau overlooking the dunes of Havre-Aubert Island and the Atlantic Ocean. It settles into the landscape with restraint, in dialogue with the territory and the surrounding built environment.

The project's architectural approach is rooted in a reading of Magdalen vernacular architecture, understood as a body of building principles and time-tested craftsmanship shaped by the climate, geography, and island way of life. This understanding of the vernacular forms the project's conceptual foundation and informs a contemporary architecture that is both durable and rooted in its setting.

Magdalen House reflects a territorial, cultural, and constructive vision, deeply rooted in its context. The quiet beauty of its surroundings, the quality of light, the relationship with the living world, and the richness of the lived experience are central to the project, forming the essential conditions for a lasting attachment to place.

The site is located within a coastal landscape characterized by a succession of sensitive environments: the Atlantic Ocean, a wide sandy beach, protected dunes, a natural bluff, and, set back from the shore, an inhabited plateau. These environments play a fundamental role in the archipelago's biodiversity, coastal stability, groundwater protection, and ecological balance, in a landscape shaped by erosion and the dynamics of prevailing winds and waves.

The dune ecosystem depends on a fragile balance between vegetation, wind-driven sand transport, and the seasonal dynamics of the coastline, making these environments particularly vulnerable to human intervention. Their preservation depends on maintaining these natural processes, which are easily disrupted by land development and human presence.

In response to these conditions, the house is situated on an existing inhabited plateau, set back from the protected dune environments, which were carefully surveyed and delineated during the preliminary design phase. Constraints related to soil bearing capacity, coastal erosion, and the maritime climate strongly informed the building's siting and structural design. Positioned along the edge of the plateau to take advantage of the most stable ground, part of the house and its large terrace are supported on timber piles. This siting strategy preserves the sensitive environments in their entirety, limits excavation, reduces the amount of concrete required, and minimizes impacts on the existing soil and vegetation, while maintaining a direct visual connection with the dunes, the beach, and the Atlantic Ocean.

The architectural concept is rooted in a contemporary reading of the Magdalen vernacular, understood as a familiar and enduring architectural language capable of evolving across time. The study of local building typologies, simple forms, gable roofs, and traditional construction details informs the design of a building that is at once discreet and recognizable.

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