We wanted to evoke a sense of impermanence and allow for other experimental structures to fill in the blanks in the future.
– Alexis Dornier

Alexis Dornier has created an "experimental treetop boutique hotel" located in Ubud on the island of Bali, Indonesia, with a mix of part-industrial, part-natural structures in a tropical forest setting.

In designing the 10ac (4ha) Lift hotel, Dornier sought to forgo the typical concrete-based development approach on the island in favour of low-rise and treehouse-like structures made of metal elements and natural materials.

Each of the structures has a different design and is made with a different collection of constituent parts.

Dornier describes the approach "a surreal mix of industrial impermanent structures embedded into a tropical forest."

Raised guest rooms have the benefits of being passively cooled and shaded, offering views of the surrounding forest and being elevated away from mosquito shrub.

The hotel also features a small sauna, a pool, a bar, seating areas, recreational areas and a yoga deck.

"Our aim was to create spaces where people could retreat to, detached and off the ground, unpretentious and reduced to a minimum," he explained.

"We wanted to evoke a sense of impermanence and allow for other experimental structures to fill in the blanks in the future."

The intention is for the development to be gradually extended in collaboration with other architects and new shapes, materials and organisational ideas.