Saunas are wonderful. We love them. We also love the opportunities they present for playing with innovative and experimental design.
There are many incredible and aspirational sauna designs around the world (many in Scandinavia, of course), by renowned architectural firms, by artists, and by laymen.
Here are five of the most beautiful and/or intriguing sauna ideas and designs we’ve seen.
Solar Egg, Kiruna, Sweden
Stockholm-based artist duo Bigert & Bergstrom created an amazing sculptural chamber in the form of an egg-shaped sauna and installed it at Luossabacken in Kiruna, Sweden’s northernmost town. The sculpture was created in response to economic developments affecting the area and townspeople.
“In the arctic climate of Lapland the sauna occupies a key position, as a room for warmth and reflection.”
The temperature inside the egg varies between 75° and 85° Celsius.
Sauna Gondola, Ylaas, Kolari, Finland
The amazing Sauna Gondola starts from the top of Yllas and takes four people at a time on a 20-minute tour in a gondola lift.
At the top of the lift there is another sauna, as well as a fireplace, Jacuzzi and showers.
Ice sauna, Kuusamo, Findland
This incredible sauna is at Rukan Salonki, and is made of ice cubes from the nearby Lake Salonkijärvi. The temperature reaches 60° Celsius. The steam is apparently “softer and wetter than in a regular sauna” where temperatures typically reach 80° Celsius.
The ice sauna seats up to 10 people, drinks are served, and there’s a hole in the ice for winter swimming next to it should you wish to take the extreme temperatures thing further.
wa_sauna, Seattle, Washington
The floating sauna – a.k.a. wa_sauna – was funded by community and by a crowdfunding campaign, and created by GoCstudio, with a focus on “primal concepts of fire, water, and community.”
wa_sauna can be seen regularly on Lake Union and Lake Washington, and is a registered vessel, powered by a battery-powed motor and heated by a wood burning stove.
According to the studio website, “Boaters and kayakers can venture out and tie off to the surrounding deck, allowing for the sauna tradition to take place on Seattle’s lakes.” (Also featured in the above image)
Sauna building, Gotherburg, Sweden
Berlin-based architects Raumlabor created this sauna which sits in the harbour at Gothenburg’s Frihhamnen port.
It features a rough exterior of corrugated steel, an interior lined with timber, and a shower room surrounded by walls made up of glass bottles. The building is part of a wider regeneration of Frihamnen, which is being transformed into a public park ahead of the city’s 400th anniversary in 2021.
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(Feature image: GoCstudio)