From September 13 to 20, Paris-based artist Marc Leschelier made his first trip to Alaska, hosted by Megan and Kendall Erst, to begin work on a pavilion for the Soon Foundation site. The pavilion is built from concrete block and is planned as a gathering place on the land. Before he arrived, we had the ground prepared and the footprint laid out: an ellipse aligned to the site’s solstice sightlines. Much of the week went to solving for Alaska’s conditions. Marc and Kendall worked out a foundation set below frost depth and structural details meant to last through freeze and thaw. We sourced block locally at Valley Block & Concrete and closed the week with a planning workshop with the lead builder and mason on site.

Between sessions we drove north through Denali State Park and Talkeetna as the tundra turned. Marc arrived with a long fascination with American lore, by way of Baudrillard’s America, and found plenty of it here. One evening we built a fire inside the residence foundation, still waiting on its walls. Marc remarked that the unfinished structure already looked like his work. Construction will proceed in stages beginning in spring. We hope to open the pavilion to guests in fall 2027.

We found the work of Roger Bores and HW Studio Arquitectos on an architecture blog. In fall 2023 we visited the studio in Morelia, Mexico, to begin the design. Roger came to the site in February 2024, before the plans were drawn. He already had a concept, and time on the bluff let him set its orientation to the land and light. The final design, completed that summer, is five semi-subterranean volumes totaling just under 130 square meters, set into the bluff facing southwest to west. Through the rest of 2024 we worked with engineers to adapt it for building underground in Alaska. We broke ground in July 2025, clearing only what the design required. That August and September, crews dug 13 feet down to pour the foundations, then raised concrete walls: 13 feet high for the guest quarters and studio, kitchen, bath, and bedroom. Power and a well followed the same year. Construction paused as we fundraise for phase two. The structure has since stood through one full winter and one summer. In that time we built a temporary tent house, hosted Marc Leschelier and Jura Shust for research trips, and connected with the local community.

Next is closing in the shell, starting with the roofs. We’re raising for that phase now. Link to Support

Artist visits and site research continue as the build progresses. Once the studio is complete, we’ll host artists by invitation and commission at the residence, with programming open to the public. Sign up above for updates.

The idea took shape in November 2022, after a visit to Naoshima together. We found the land two months later, in January 2023, through months of remote research before we ever walked it.

We were looking for rural Alaska in a specific sense: somewhere immersed in nature but still reachable by a maintained road. The parcel sits on a bluff near Caswell, south of Talkeetna, overlooking roughly 300 acres of state land protected from development. Through the trees you can see the horizon, Sleeping Lady and, on clear days, Denali.

The area is unincorporated, home to a small, self-reliant community with a long mushing tradition. With family nearby in the Susitna Valley, it was already familiar ground for Megan.

When we finally walked it, Kendall wanted to cover every inch and map the lines. It was the first time we figured out how to work together. An old driveway and clearing were already there, so we built around them to keep as many trees as we could. That first evening we stayed for the sunset and listened to the neighbors’ dogs.