antities of hot water. “It is modern,” says the architect
Grimshaw, “but it is not minimalist. We’re getting across
the idea of it as a pleasure, a place where you go to disengage, to contemplate.”
The Tschuggen Bergoase spa and thermal designed by the
Swiss architect Mario Botta is positioned on the skirts of
the Swiss Alps in the resort town of Arosa. The structure
is meant to hide its mass in the hillside exposing itself to
the exterior only in the form of light ‘trees’, large glass
leaf like structures that let in light during the day and
are illuminated at night. With the use of Arosa granite as
the primary material, this structure is yet another interesting example of the unification of stone, water and light
seen in Vals with also the same attention to generating
a space of peace and tranquility integrated with nature.
Describing the spa as a “sacred space”, Botta says of the
Tschuggen Bergoase, “…the Spa is carved into a mounta-
in, overall it is not a grotto in that it is defined by open
spaces with smooth walls. The concept is that of a sanctuary – a place to escape.”
Römerbad Kleinkirchheim, located in Austria, is considered to be one of the most influential works of Behnisch,
Behnisch & Partner – the German architecture firm especial famous for its spa designs. Initially in 2003–7 they
designed the spa in Bad Aibling, Bavaria, Germany and
later the expansion of the Roman Baths in Bad Kleinkirchheim in Carinthia, Austria in 2006-2007. The primary
strategy of both of these set out to absorb the particulars
of the respective site, not unlike Zumthor’s vanguard building, if in an entirely different architectural vocabulary.
Round, flowing forms integrate water into the shape of
the building in a design strategy that seeks to develop an
architecture that is upbeat and modern, a far cry from the
clinical feel of many municipal swimming facilities and
AVUSTURYA’DAKİ
BAD
KLEINKIRCHHEIM
SPA, DINAMİK
VE AKIŞKAN BİR
MİMARİYE SAHİP
Dynamic
flowing
architecture in
the Austrian Bad
Kleinkirchheim
spa
KASIM-ARALIK 2010 • NATURA 17