The first three cabins of a planned community of 40 on Bigwin Island sit nestled among maple, pine, and ash trees. The sweeping view they enjoy, down to the golf course and the lake beyond, is courtesy of the island’s deer: the grazing line under the trees, a swath of open air through the greenery, influenced the siting of the buildings and their emphasis on transparency between roof and floor, and earth and sky.

Exquisitely crafted from wood, with a quietly assertive design, the cabins reference the big, sheltering roofs of Muskoka’s historic cottages and boathouses, and even evoke the interior of a canoe, without ever veering into kitsch. Although sophisticated in appearance, the buildings employ practical, prosaic construction techniques. The roof structure, for example, is made from ordinary engineered wood trusses, elevated through meticulous design into something beautiful.

The ambition of this project transcends the individual guesthouses; Mackay-Lyons Sweetapple is bringing to Bigwin Island a vision of community. The buildings engage not only with the landscape, but with each other. They are sited in clusters, where their transparency and openness put them in conversational relationships. At once familiar and experimental, respectful and assertive, and durable enough to stand up to the demanding climate of their location while elegantly referencing its layered heritage and beauty, the Bigwin Island cabins offer a balanced, inventive and sustainable response to a complex architectural challenge.