The SkyPark apart-hotel, designed by the Kamen art group by Vadim Grekov, is located in the village of Esto-Sadok, in one of the ski resorts of Krasnaya Polyana. The complex consists of three separate buildings with 136 rooms and sixteen "chalets" a little higher up the slope. In 2014, the hotel hosted the guests of the Olympics.
One of the main tasks that the architects faced was not to disturb the natural environment. The facades of the five-storey hotel buildings, facing the mountains, received expressive plastic due to the asymmetrically located cantilever volumes of the loggias. Sculpture and variety are also added by "buttresses" and transparent partitions of the balconies. The windows are positioned so that each offers a panoramic view of the mountains. Because of the asymmetry and some "pile-up" the image turned out to be natural, organic - like an anthill, a beaver dam, or a ravine with burrows of coastal swallows, which are built, though not according to drawings and not from exactly cut parts, but extremely robust and thoughtful.
Facing material plays an important role in creating a natural image that can be easily integrated into the mountain landscape. On the facades, the authors used fiber cement panels
EQUITONE [tectiva] with a sanded surface and natural shades. The architects chose three natural shades - beige and two gray: light and dark. The panels were cut into "dies" of different widths and lengths and laid in a colorful patchwork pattern, which allows the building to "mimic" the surroundings: mountains, forests and valleys. By contrast, the protruding loggias have only one - a gray tone and vertical masonry, which makes them look like either huge boulders or cable car cabins.
Interestingly, due to such a combination of colors, textures and volumes, the building fits equally well into the landscape both in summer, when the greenery complements the "earthy" shades of the building, and in winter, when the light reflected from the snow makes it lighter.
The “courtyard” facade is flatter and more calm, but it is made in the same colorful pattern, therefore it does not look monotonous.
Due to the peculiarities of the relief and the large difference in heights, the cottages have also acquired a complex shape - they seem to grow out of the ground and stand on a "leg". Since EQUITONE [tectiva] panels can be cut to size, they easily follow the lines of the building. Due to the low thickness and weight of the panels, there was no need to additionally reinforce the supporting structures. Each house has a terrace with wooden decking, railings and beams, with which the fiber cement is combined quite organically.
For construction in such a place, environmental indicators are important, which are quite high for EQUITONE panels. Fiber cement is an environmentally friendly and durable material. It consists of natural elements - cement, sand and mineral fibers, which are mixed with water and cellulose. Fiber cement does not harm humans, does not pollute water, air and soil. It can be recycled and reused, and disposal does not require special treatment. The environmental performance of EQUITONE panels is in accordance with the EPD system.
