Spa in the Raw...

Sketch Model: Front

Section/Elevation and Reflected Ceiling Plan

Interior Perspective

Exterior Perspective

Plan View

This place to bathe has finally come full circle. I started out researching the Roman baths and attempted using their 3 main rooms as the basis behind my spa, upon more research I was really intrigued by the Native American sweat lodges. Not only did they use the sweat lodges as places to bathe, the Native Americans thought of their time inside the lodge as a time of purification, ridding themselves of all impurities to get back to the 'natural' self. My design took a turn in the direction. I wanted to create a place to bathe that was as raw as the Native American sweat lodges. The original lodges were all very low to the ground basic domed structures; made out of saplings and animal hides. In accordance to ADA requirements height had to be adjusted just enough for a wheelchair to enter the space. Over all the space is 7'-0" tall and 13'-0" wide. I enclosed the circle in the square to help with the requirements for users with disabilities and because I wanted the lodge to connect back to the original form. Instead of having a hole in the ground in the center of the space like the Native Americans, there is a 3'-0" tall shelf that is 8" wide circling around the space where the heated stones would be placed.
The exterior walls are concrete substrate with a stucco finish. The beams on the outside of the structure are oak. The interior walls are concrete substrate with a layer of applied stucco and the top half of the wall has teak wood panelling. The floor is a concrete slab with teak wood on top. and the ceiling piece is reinforced concrete, with double pane glass in the 4" gap between it and the oak posts.