In June 2010 while I was living in Germany I joined a summer school in Helsinki, Finland to design and build a sauna in two and a half weeks.

The design brief asked for a sauna to be constructed of timber with a primary structure of a 2.1m cube of laminated veneer lumber.

The resulting design elevates the sauna box on timber columns to offer unexpected views to the surroundings. In doing so, a new entry ritual into the sauna itself is created. Interior benches are suspended within the box to capture the hot air rising from the stones below. Exterior cladding protects the sauna from the elements and maintains a rhythm to amplify the floating box.