Sanatorija is a miniature spa that was the result of a 2 week design and build workshop held at the Rucka Art residency, a manor house that previously housed a tuberculosis hospital on the edge of the small town of Cesis, Latvia. The ambition for the spa was to provide a place for guests in residency a place to relax and enjoy the beautiful setting of the manor and wild parkland.
The micro spa provides a traditional Latvian sauna inside a derelict 17th century subterranean ice-house found in the grounds of the manor. Following the sauna, guests can cool themselves down in a bucket shower or jump into the infinity pool that sits on top of a cantilevered sun-deck, floating above the sauna below with views over the surrounding orchard. The sun deck is on rollers that allow the deck to be rolled over the infinity pool, providing cover when not in use.
The team researched Latvian sauna rituals with the help of local expert Dzintra Kozaka and discovered natural remedies found in the local forest gathered with the help of well-known herbal spa specialist Dr. Artūrs Tereško.
The sauna is still in use today and reaches temperatures of up to 70 degrees Celsius. The project was initiated through the RTU International Summer School and was completed by an international team of students.
Tutors: Niklāvs Paegle (LV), Thomas Randall–Page (UK), Theodore Molloy (UK);
Participants: Austris Sauka (LV), Basak Kalfa (TR), Galina Mikhailova (BY), Kristina Dimitrova (BG), Leonique Winnen (NL), Lucas Facer (UK), Paula Negrut (RO), Tanya Chandra (IN), Tatiana Gurduza (MD), Tereza Vokurkova (CZ).
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