The aesthetic model for the project was icy structures in nature. In particular, those that are created when water flows along the branches of plants and freezes on them. The structures, which are otherwise so delicate in winter, gain volume through the encasing ice. The transparent ice allows the structures underneath to shine through. Icy structures are never static. Like a living object, they are subject to constant change. Ice reacts particularly sensitively to climatic changes, which is why building with ice is a temporary process and not a static state. When considering ice as a building material, there are a number of major advantages. As a completely natural raw material, it is climate-neutral. In addition, the freezing process is completely reversible. It is therefore ideal for temporary structures with a limited lifespan. The water that forms the basis for the ice is also available almost everywhere in our latitudes. The main advantage of this is that there is no need for costly material transport, especially in difficult-to-access, high alpine locations (where such a construction method is conceivable due to the climatic conditions). From a technical point of view, ice is already a very interesting building material in terms of its material characteristics.

However, particularly high-performance material properties can be achieved in combination with other materials. Similar to reinforced concrete, which combines the positive properties of concrete (compressive strength) with those of steel (tensile strength), ice (which, like concrete, is very resistant to compression) can also be combined with another material to form a hybrid. Another advantage here is that the water can be placed around another material in liquid form (just like the initially liquid concrete). The material partner for the ice is a material that compensates for its weakness (low tensile strength). This task is performed by ropes in this project.