Ondsauna Sauna by Taro Shimokawa is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2025 A' Design Award i Bronze in Arkitektur-, Bygnings- og Konstruktionsdesign Competition Category.
BronzeArkitektur· 2025
Ondsauna Sauna
Client: Ondpark
A' Design Award i Bronze Winner in Arkitektur Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #165443The Design
About Ondsauna Sauna
Ondsauna er en saunabygning placeret i en skov. Lodrette ydervægge er grupperet omkring saunarummet og genspejler træernes opadgående vækst. En spiralformet sti fører til et taghavesareal til afslapning. Indgangen ligger 250 millimeter over jordniveau, dækket til det kolde bad ligger på 1000 millimeter, og taget på 3250 millimeter, så bevægelsen fra sauna til koldt bad til det åbne luft foregår lodret. En uregelmæssig polygonal grundplan og stumpvinklede bænke styrer sigtelinjerne og lader de besøgende vælge deres niveau af interaktion.
The Recognition
About the A' Design Award i Bronze
Ondsauna Sauna er vinder af A' Design Award i Bronze, en højt prestigefyldt anerkendelse, der tildeles enestående designs, som udmærker sig ved kreativitet, opfindsomhed og skarpsindighed. Bronzevinderne er rigeligt dygtige og påfaldende kreative artefakter, der bekræfter deres designeres store erfaring, fantasi og snilde. Ondsauna Sauna forventes at være en højt estimeret, beundret og kær genstand, der er bemærkelsesværdigt professionel og innovativ. Dette design, der har vundet A' Design Award i Bronze, indarbejder bedste praksis inden for kunst, videnskab, design og teknologi og er fremragende på grund af sin sans for detaljer. Ondsauna Sauna tilfredsstiller pragtfuldt behov, rører længsler, charmerer følelser og appellerer til nysgerrigheden.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Trees grow endlessly upward, a concept reflected in the vertical exterior walls clustered around the sauna room. A spiraling path leads upward to a rooftop relaxation space, mirroring the building's form. The sauna entrance is at GL+250, the cold plunge deck at GL+1000, and the rooftop at GL+3250, so the transition from sauna to cold plunge to open air follows a vertical flow. Viewing the forest at treetop height allows one to share in its growth rhythm.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- The irregular plan was chosen to allow the passage and expansion of the line of sight and to adjust the degree of intimacy, which was rationally solved by the 150mm CLT floor slab. The elimination of beams has eliminated non-perpendicular joints in the structure, contributing to labor savings in site work. The rational walls of the scale module are discretely assembled and the CLT slab connects them. This structural form itself can be described as a sociopetal structure.
- Production Technology
- An irregular polygonal floor plan guides sightlines, creating varied scenic views. Research shows conversations are twice as frequent at 90 degrees versus side-by-side. Here, strangers sit together, so we chose obtuse-angled benches to balance interaction and privacy, encouraging conversation without intrusion. Varied seating allows for different levels of interaction, while the overall arrangement around a fire fosters a shared experience.
- Inspiration
- In a sauna, strangers sit nearly naked in close proximity, creating potential intimacy. Yet in Japan, public saunas haven’t fostered this sense of community. By aligning with Japan’s unique sense of closeness, we aim to create a sociopetal space, encouraging shared understanding without forced intimacy. “Non-intrusive” walls balance connection and separation; their verticality resonates with the forest, while their spacing draws nature in and modulates closeness among neighbors.
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