Natatorium

The project began with the site: a small, aging auditorium soon to be sold and redeveloped into a new kind of bathhouse. Rather than simply replacing the old with the new, I saw an opportunity to reimagine what a bathhouse could be — not just in function, but in experience.

From the beginning, the tall auditorium windows captivated me. Despite the building’s modest scale, these vertical apertures allowed light to enter in slivers, casting a quiet, reverent atmosphere within. It felt spiritual — almost sacred. These windows didn’t just illuminate; they shielded. They created a private inner world, filtering the outside while revealing the sky above. That duality — separation and connection — became the foundation of my design.

Client
Woodbury University

Year
2017

I wanted to preserve and reinterpret this quality of light and enclosure in the new bathhouse. The goal was to craft an experience no one had encountered before — one that invites users to disconnect from the external world and engage with their senses in unexpected ways. By manipulating light, scale, sound, and material, the bathhouse becomes more than a place to cleanse the body; it becomes a space for sensory recalibration, introspection, and renewal.

FLOOR TILE

PORCELAIN

WALL TILE

POOL TILE

This project challenges traditional expectations of a bathhouse by embracing extremes: of light and shadow, of openness and intimacy, of silence and sound. The design is not just about architecture — it’s about evoking feeling, offering a retreat from the visual noise of everyday life, and creating a sanctuary where the body and mind can reconnect.