Peter Zumthor
Churchill, Canton Grisones.Suiza. 1996
This equipment is located in a small valley in the Swiss canton of Graubünden 1200 m above sea level beside the river of Valserrhein. It is one of the most recognized Swiss architect, Prtizker Award for Architecture 2009.
Is, as its name indicates, of a thermal resort which is situated on the slope of a steep valley side, integrating with it and appearing shaped bunker with a series of holes from which you can see the entire valley landscape. Peter Zumthor would win the competition held in 1990. The building was inaugurated 1996 After two and four years of construction project.
Noted for their own material using the site: quartzite feature extracted from the mines in the region. One element that contributes to the inclusion in the specific place to be in a valley surrounded by pine. The main value of the work is its intense simplicity and almost Zen simplicity where volumes seem to emerge discreetly of land on which was built.
The baths have been erected adding layer after layer Vals quartzite, until a total of 60.000 pieces. where stone is not only an embellishment, but also fulfills a structural and roof support.
The main idea, completely forming that project, is to carve an enormous monolith with caves pierce mineral, almost excavated areas. The volume makes one groove is a strategy to pierce the mass located in the upper part of the building, leaving way to the light. The resulting building has a stone appearance that resembles a bunker. Its interior is somewhat emulate the caverns with water slides, such as mysterious underground natural enclosures, in which the spaces are illuminated by a zenithal form cracks in the ceiling light entering unreal.
The project is built formally by aggregating a number of modules in the form of inverted L, so that the vertical part to the horizontal supports tensile.
References:
Article by ETSA Valles:
Monograph on Wikipedia:
Virtual Video of the Baths
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