Norway

Piers Taylor and Caroline Quentin head to Norway, where architecture is influenced by incredible landscapes and extreme climate.

They begin on Vega Island, 600 km north of Oslo near the Arctic Circle. It is the stunning location of Vega Cottage, a truly remote family retreat delicately perched on rocks and overlooking the beach. The architects' challenge was to create a home that emulated the traditional fishermen's huts nearby and left the surrounding landscape completely untouched. The result is a beautiful but modest home - the epitome of Norwegian understatement. The second home on their journey is in Valldal, where Summer House teeters on a cliff, overlooking the beautiful fjords. Here, Jan Jensen, one of Norway's most exciting architects, has created an eye-opening eagle's nest of a home. It is a mixture of spaces built into and around the rock face with a series of elevated bedroom pods held aloft on stilts. There is also a mammoth rock face in the living room and an infinity pool hanging in space.