Perugia (PG), Italy
Designer Marco Williams Fagioli of Zup Design succeeded to combine successfully the sauna, a Turkish bath, and a shower in a compact spa, the Yoku SH Wellbeing Space for Effegibi, that lets anyone live these ancient practices.
The project has been recently awarded a 2020 Good Design Award by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
In the Yoku S/SH version, the front becomes a large open “bookcase” with pickled steel shelving.
It acts as a natural filter and holds objects, books, and fabrics, creating a highly personalized look and connecting with the spa surroundings.
Another innovation is the heater, which is built into the lower bench of the sauna, blending the traditional technology seamlessly while accentuating the clean, stylish proportions of the interior with its vertical and horizontal elements that heighten the relaxing effect of the experience.
The inspiration, and name, of the spa, comes from a particular branch of Japanese natural medicine called shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing,” which espouses the principle that immersing ourselves in nature can have surprising benefits to our health.
The key features of the Yoku SH system are the large recessed glass wall in a bronze smoked glass along the front and the vertical elements in natural wood, which create the feeling of being outdoors, in the middle of a forest, bringing elegance and privacy to the heat experience.
Project: Yoku SH Wellbeing Space
Designers: Marco Williams Fagioli, Zup Design
Manufacturer: Effegibi srl.
