Press Release
Bronze A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design Goes to In Seclusion Riverside Spa by Zehua Zhang
Zehua Zhang recognized for architecture, building and structure design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 18, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ In Seclusion Riverside Spa by Zehua Zhang has been granted the Bronze A' Design Award in the Architecture, Building and Structure Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was reached through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who scored anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
What the Bronze A' Design Award Means
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
More About In Seclusion Riverside Spa
The project is a riverside spa in Portugal. The design is set within an existing natural landscape and uses fluid architectural volumes to reduce visual impact. Large areas of glazing are introduced to allow views between interior spaces and the surrounding environment. Timber finishes and stone flooring are applied throughout the interior. The program includes a sauna, jacuzzi, and Turkish bath, arranged to form a sequence of bathing spaces. The layout organizes these functions in relation to the river and surrounding terrain.
About Zehua Zhang
I am a designer and thinker who bridges creativity and purpose. My work shapes experiences, connecting people, space, and ideas with clarity and impact. I have led complex projects, received professional recognition, and contributed to competitions and juries, reflecting both skill and leadership. Beyond practice, I aim to create inclusive, meaningful spaces that enrich society. What makes me interesting is my balance of logic and intuition, precision and imagination, using design and art to explore, inspire, and transform the world around us.
Award Record
Zehua Zhang is a winner of 2 A' Design Awards, including this recognition. All of the awards belong to the 2025 - 2026 edition of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Architecture, Building and Structure Design Award
The A' Architecture Design Award is an international architectural design competition recognizing good architectural designs by best architects worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to architectural design studios, building contractors, structural engineering firms and architecture and design consultants from all countries. Entries typically include skyscrapers, museums, residential buildings, commercial complexes, educational institutions and religious structures. Awarded architectural projects are published at https://designers.org/design-category/architecture
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://designers.org/180620
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/180620
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!180620
- Laureate Profile: https://designers.org/d/368120
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- In Seclusion Riverside Spa
- Function
- Riverside Spa
- Category
- Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture
- Colors
- Black, Dark Slate Gray, Dim Gray, Ghost White and Gray
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Zehua Zhang
- Country
- United States of America
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #180620
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- This is a riverside spa design in Portugal that embodies serene seclusion. It harmonizes fully with its historic and natural surroundings, using low-profile architecture, expansive glass, timber interiors, and stone flooring to blur indoor and outdoor boundaries. Its strengths lie in immersive nature integration, warm materiality, and a layout combining sauna, jacuzzi, and Turkish bath, offering guests a profound, multi-sensory retreat deeply connected to the landscape.
- Inspiration
- The inspiration came from the serene beauty of the Vez River and the timeless presence of the old watermill. I was drawn to creating a space that allows people to reconnect with nature and themselves, offering quietude without isolation. My motive was to design a spa that flows with the landscape, using natural materials and transparent architecture to blur boundaries, fostering a profound, immersive experience of calm, reflection, and harmony with the environment.
- Research
- Type of research: design-focused experiential study. Research objectives: explore how architecture can promote deep relaxation and enhance the human-nature connection. Methodology: combining site analysis, material studies, spatial simulations, and daylight analysis. Data collection: through site photos, topographic drawings, and building equipment specifications. Research tools: cad models, 3d visualizations, material samples, and environmental sensors monitoring light, sound, and water interaction.
- Challenge
- The hardest part was balancing serenity with practicality—preserving the historic watermill while adding modern spa facilities. Internally, respecting the site’s history and ecology challenged design choices. Externally, strict codes, structural limits, and material availability required adaptation. Technology and environmental analysis guided solutions, ensuring minimal impact while creating a harmonious, immersive experience
- Realization and Technology
- The spa was designed through careful site analysis, integrating gently with the terrain. Timber, beige stone, and low-iron glass were chosen for warmth, durability, and transparency. The process combined ecological sensitivity, modular planning for sauna, jacuzzi, and Turkish bath, and precise glazing to enhance visual connections with nature, creating a harmonious, immersive, and sustainable environment.
- Operation and Interaction
- The spa functions through immersive spatial design: guests move through curated areas—pool, sauna, jacuzzi, Turkish bath—experiencing gentle sensory transitions. Interaction arises from visual and tactile engagement with natural materials, light, and water. Key moments occur at floor-to-ceiling glazing, pool edges, and steam-filled interiors. By harmonizing with nature, it deepens relaxation, enhances well-being, and fosters a seamless, restorative human-nature connection.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in February 2025 and finished in June 2025
- Specifications
- Single-story building with overall dimensions of 20 meters in width, 8 meters in depth, and 8 meters in height.
- Keywords
- Landscape architecture, leisure spa, wellness facilities, low-impact design, indoor-outdoor connection, integration with nature, immersive experience
