Italy WWF Observatory

Designed for a WWF oasis on an Italian lagoon, the observatory is a family of lightweight geodesic cabins that let people watch birds without being seen by them. Timber-framed domes clad in cork and glass panels sit gently on the wetland — a ground cabin for equipped observation, a floating cabin tethered to the deck that drifts birders out to water level, and a two-tier tower whose upper gallery lifts the sighting line above the reeds. Openable and fixed sighting windows are placed strategically around each dome to maximise views of the avifauna, while the natural cork skin insulates, silences, and weathers into the landscape.