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Fogo Island Arts studios were designed by Newfoundland-born, Norway-based Todd Saunders. Situated at various locations across the island, each of the four studios is distinct in design. Anchored into a landscape of volcanic rock by steel legs, they range in size from 200 to 1200 square feet and are completely off-the-grid — equipped with compost toilets, solar powered electricity and wood-burning stoves. In addition to the implementation of ecological building systems, the environmental impact of the construction was minimized by the use of local materials, which were largely transported to the remote building sites by hand.

While the studios were built using materials intended to evoke vernacular building traditions in the region, Saunders’ structures look strikingly contemporary. The stilt legs holding up one end of Long Studio, for example, directly reference fishing stages used for the salting and drying of cod that are seen throughout Newfoundland outport communities. With the studios, Saunders uses architecture to express an essential fact about life in the region, in which dwellings create a strong bulwark and safe haven against constantly changing weather conditions.