Materials, Colour Palette and Lighting.

I wanted the colours inside the bath house to draw from the pocket forest and carry on the relation of the two in this way. The colours I’ve used are a mix of earthy tones – browns, greens, greys and creams/whites. The space doesn’t receive a lot of natural light due to the surrounding buildings and the density of the pocket forest. In using some darker colours I have limited the light in the space further so I decided to then think about how specific lighting would need to be used to make the space bright enough.

The space is already partly underground so I wanted to keep the feel of going down into a subterranean space and make it feel as if the bath house is almost a hidden or secret place. The dim lighting achieves this effect as it provides adequate light to see and be safe whilst also making the space feel calm, peaceful and unique to the often bright and harshly lit spaces we spend our days in. We are usually drowned in light in our day to day spaces – fluorescent lighting, phones and computer screens, tv’s, and natural bright light from the sun. This space is a retreat from those kinds of harsh lighting through the soft/dim atmosphere.

When thinking about which materials I wanted to use I knew straight away that I wanted to repurpose the Scoria stone that already creates one of the exterior walls of the building. By repurposing this stone it allows me to reduce waste. This volcanic stone is also a nod to Aucklands volcanic landscape and increases the Mauri of the site. The interior walls will mostly be covered with this stone as the texture and colour creates a beautiful ambience.

The bathroom is a series of thin wooden panels with the invisible doors being a part of the wall with no visible hinges/joints. I choose to use a locally sourced Lawson Cypress for the bathroom as it has a strong natural durability. It also has minimal shrinkages through its different stages. It is easy to work with and has a beautiful finish as well as being highly scented. For the interiors of my bathrooms and changing rooms I have gone with a product called Laminam 3+. This product is able to be used for wall linings, low impact flooring and other decorative areas. It is available in many colours but I chose to use the Oxide Perla. This allows me to have a bright and clean looking space whilst sill incorporating some texture.

The floor throughout is a bush hammered concrete. The process of bush hammering creates an even non-slip texture to the concrete as well as leaving it with an enhanced appearance. I chose concrete as it is durable and easy to maintain over time.

I’ve used a green Emeraude stone for the exisiting columns along with some seating/benches throughout the bath house. I choose to use this stone as the green tone of it brings in the greenery from the pocket forest and the marbled texture gives a sense of luxury to the space.

The balustrades are glass along with the windows which have steel frames. The lift between the two levels is marine grade aluminium (the same material they use for shark diving cages) This material is strong and durable especially when in use around water.