Blocks of pastel-coloured tiles overlap across the walls and floors of this spa in Switzerland, designed by local studio Bureau to reflect the serenity of "floating naked in a highly salted water pod".
Bureau aimed to create a space for the Origin in Geneva's Saint-François neighbourhood that complimented the spa's floatation therapy offering – where clients unwind in sensory deprivation tanks filled with warm salt water, but devoid of light and sound to create the feeling of floating.
Pastel-coloured tiles feature in the reception (top image) and relaxation area (above) of the Origin spa
"The spaces in Origin are about the progression towards that state," Bureau explained.
"When one closes the eyes, the light that was absorbed transforms into colours. Flashes of that connect with undefined sensations and realities perceived in the space but also, most of them, outside of it."
Blocks of baby blue, pink and yellow feature throughout the space
This visual of flashes of colour behind closed eyes is translated into blocks of baby pink, blue and yellow, which the studio says help to create a transition between the outside world and the ethereal experience of "floating naked in a highly salted water pod".
To create this sense of progression, Bureau founders Daniel Zamarbide, Carine Pimenta and Galliane Zamarbide divided the 190-square-metre spa into three sections – a reception and waiting area, a relaxation room and a treatment space with three separate tank rooms.
Loungers and storage units in the relaxation area are made from pastel-coloured steel
In the reception, waiting and relaxation areas, blocks of the pastel-hued tiles overlap across the walls and floors to create a dream-like space that plays with perspective.
"Curtains, rails, vertical lines, horizontal surfaces, shelves, long chairs, more lines, tile grids as a guiding measure – all of it contributes to a strong subjectivity of perceptive," the studio explained.
The minimal furniture pieces and design objects that populate the space were chosen to blend in with the abstract interior.
In the relaxation area, loungers made from pastel-coloured steel are divided by sheer white curtains and paired with matching shelving, curtain rails and ceiling lights.
The sensory deprivation tanks are tinged in blue light
In contrast, the tank rooms are clean white spaces tinged in tranquil blue light, each holding a capsule-shaped sensory deprivation tank at its centre.
Other pastel-hued wellness interiors include a salon in Stockholm by Swedish architecture studio ASKA with an undulating ceiling installation that looks like dripping shampoo.
Dark grey walls and a crisp silhouette define a residence created by US firm Side Angle Side for Texas-based architectural photographer Casey Dunn.
Located in an East Austin neighbourhood, the three-bedroom Casa Casey rises two levels and totals 1,900 square feet (177 square metres).
Casa Casey was designed for photographer Casey Dunn
It was designed for a discerning client – Casey Dunn, an Austin native who has photographed work by Clayton Korte, Lake Flato Architects, and other leading studios in Texas and beyond.
When Dunn first asked local architect Arthur Furman to design the house, Furman was working at his father’s architecture firm, Furman & Keil Architects. The commission spurred him and his wife, Annie-Laurie Grabiel, to start their own practice, Side Angle Side.
The house features a gabled roof that's expressed on the inside
Initially, the house was meant to be a bit smaller, but Dunn got married during the course of the project, necessitating a slightly larger abode.
"The original project brief was less about bedrooms and bathrooms, and more about the character of the home – specifically, the shape," said the architects.
Grey stucco walls define the residence's facade
The dwelling has a restrained appearance that was influenced by the minimalist structures found in Marfa, Texas – where Dunn spent time shooting houses for the book Marfa Modern.
Inspiration also came from a house in a Maine forest that Dunn photographed early in his career. It was a simple box with a pointy roof.
A salvaged wooden beam spans the living space
"The house was a basic shape, as one would draw as a child," the architect said. "He had been interested in that shape ever since."
In response, Casa Casey has a rectangular plan and a gabled form. Its standing-seam metal roof is nearly flush with the side walls, giving the home a particularly crisp silhouette.
Facades are covered in grey, burnished stucco. Limited glazing helps keep the home cool on sweltering summer days.
The street-facing elevation, which faces west, is fronted by a permeable driveway. The main entrance is found on the building's north side, where a Douglas fir door sits within an entry cove.
White oak cabinets are topped with soapstone in the kitchen
From the foyer, one rounds a corner and steps into a double-height space for living, cooking and dining. A salvaged wooden beam stretches overhead.
A wood-burning stove occupies one corner of the lofty public zone. Its black hue contrasts with the room’s light-toned finishes. On the north, a glazed sliding door provides access to a rear deck.
The main bedroom suite has access to a balcony
Neutral colours and earthy decor are found throughout the dwelling, including flooring made of reclaimed longleaf pine.
In the kitchen, cabinets are made of white oak, and counters are topped with soapstone. A cast-in-place concrete wall serves as a backsplash.
A vintage clawfoot tub is mounted in the bathroom
The main bedroom suite is sparingly adorned and features a window overlooking the living area below. A glass door leads onto a balcony that was cut into the roof and is shaded by wooden slats.
A barn door separates the sleeping area from the bathroom, where the team installed white oak cabinetry and a vintage clawfoot tub.
Large windows create bright spaces throughout the house
Overall, designing the home was an exercise in simplicity and restraint, the architects said.
"As architects, we always getting in our own way by trying to show off and over complicate things for no reason," they explained. "This project required us to step aside and surrender to the simplicity of it."
An wooden deck provides an outdoor dining area
Other homes in Texas include a brick, mid-century residence that was updated by Clayton & Little, now called Clayton Korte, and a remote dwelling by Michael Hsu that is clad in local stone and charred wood. Both projects were photographed by Dunn.
Architect: Side Angle Side Interior design: Ann Edgerton Builder/general contractor: Waller Building Company Structural engineer: GreenEarth Engineering Landscape design: Studio Balcones Lighting design: Paterson Electric
A series of twisting walls made from local brick form partitions that separate the living spaces within this house in the Indian city of Trivandrum.
Local architecture office Wallmakers designed the Pirouette House as a tribute to British-born Indian architect Lawrence Wilfred "Laurie" Baker, who promoted the revival of regional building practices and the use of local materials such as brick.
Top: a screen was made using reclaimed scaffolding pipes. Above: internal walls twist between rooms
The house is situated on a compact site in the capital of the southern state of Kerala. It is surrounded by other properties, which led the architects to design an inward-facing building with spaces arranged around a central courtyard.
Wallmakers based the house's construction on a bricklaying technique – the rat-trap bond – used by Baker, who created several buildings in Trivandrum that demonstrated a pioneering approach to sustainable and organic architecture.
Curved walls conceal structural components
The rat-trap bond is a way of laying bricks at right angles to create a cavity in the wall that helps increase thermal efficiency and reduce the volume of bricks required.
At the Pirouette House, Wallmakers adapted this technique to create curved walls that provide enhanced structural performance as well as concealing structural components and service ducts.
A metal staircase leads along the side of the reclaimed screen
"The idea was further developed to form a series of slanting walls that dance left and right, converging only to support the ferro-cement shell roof," the architects explained.
"Each staggered wall has been tailor-made to suit the issue of deficiency in space that this residence posed, aiming to create larger volumes and a feeling of privacy."
The kitchen diner has an open plan arrangement
The twisting brick walls create attractive shapes that seem to gently envelop the different rooms within the house. Protruding bricks produce patterns of light and shadow on the surfaces, which didn't require any additional finishing.
The project's use of kiln-fired brick also supports a local industry that is in danger of collapsing, as construction firms typically favour machine-made brick.
Baker was known for salvaging and reusing waste materials, and for this project metal scaffolding pipes used during the house's construction were repurposed to form the treads of the main staircase, as well as for screens incorporated into several openings.
Scaffolding planks were reused to form part of the living room's floor, and locally sourced cane has been woven around metal poles to create screens and furniture including chairs and a sofa.
Bricks protrude from the walls of Pirouette House
The building's floor slabs and roof are made from ferro-cement, which combines cement with steel reinforcing bars that allow for much thinner profiles and therefore less material than an equivalent structure made from reinforced concrete.
The house features a sheltered carport and entrance area that incorporates bench seating, with curving steps leading up to the front door. Inside, the ground floor contains an open living area with a sunken courtyard positioned beneath the staircase.
A circular wall feature was created using concrete
The kitchen is situated to the rear of the space and features a cantilevered dining table that projects out into the living area. A bedroom with an en suite toilet is also accommodated on this level.
The staircase ascends to a landing that provides an informal lounge area. Two further bedrooms, including the main suite, are located on this level, along with a terrace that looks out across the surrounding neighbourhood.
The bedrooms have angular windows
Wallmakers was established by architect Vinu Daniel in 2007 and was named after its first project, which was a simple compound wall.
The studio has subsequently focused on creating buildings using natural materials including earth, as well as reusing discarded materials in its low-cost, eco-friendly projects.
This tubular holiday home cantilevers over a hill in Russia's Nikola-Lenivets Art Park.
Moscow's chief architect Sergey Kuznetsov clad the 12-metre-long building in a continuous sheet of stainless steel and claims that its structure is held together using only six bolts.
Located in the Polish city of Katowice, Living-Garden House by architect Robert Konieczny includes a cantilevered upper storey
Set at 90 degrees to the house's ground-level volume, the upper section is supported by a reflective podium designed to create an illusion that it isn't supporting the structure.
Dutch studio MVRDV and British firm Mole Architects collaborated to design the Balancing Barn holiday home in Suffolk, UK, which has a swing hanging from the end of its 15-metre cantilever.
Completed in 2010, the building balances on a central concrete core. The portion of the house that rests on the ground is made from heavier materials than the half that suspends in free space.
This house on the top of a hill in New South Wales, Australia, was designed by Sydney-based studio Atelier Andy Carson.
A pair of rooms, supported by angled pillars, cantilever over the hillside and include large windows that provide visitors with views of a nearby beach and bay.
Portuguese architect Aries Mateus designed this house in the country's Monzaraz region to be largely concealed within the landscape and topped with a green roof.
Where the house protrudes from the hillside a cast concrete roof is cantilevered to form a canopy that shelters a window with views of the surrounding landscape.
Designed by Students at the University of Arkansas' Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design, Little Rock house is formed of two cuboid structures stacked perpendicular to each other.
The house's cantilevered upper storey is supported by a lightweight steel truss.
UF Haus in Bavaria by German studio SoHo Architektur has a cantilevered upper storey, partially supported by a V-shaped steel beam
Many of the materials used to build the home were left in their raw state, which is reflected in the property's name – a German abbreviation of "unfinished."
Designed so that every level of this three-storey house is accessible from the neighbouring ski run, Strawn + Sierralta's Californian ski chalet features several cantilevers arranged at dramatic angles.
The holiday home, which can sleep up to 17 people, has large glass windows that offer panoramic views of its snowy surroundings.
The Italian design industry is seeing a generational change when it comes to gender equality, says Maria Porro, the youngest-ever president of Salone del Mobile and the first woman to hold the role.
Porro, born in 1983, was appointed president of Salone del Mobile in July. Prior to Salone, she was president of Assarredo, the Italian trade association for furniture manufacturers, where she was also the first woman in the role.
Porro also works as the marketing and communications director of Italian design brand Porro, which was co-founded by her great-grandfather Giulio, and grew up visiting Salone with her grandfather.
"[Salone del Mobile] is an appointment that I've never missed since I was a child," she told Dezeen.
However, she pursued another creative career when she was growing up, studying set design at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts.
"I studied set design, and I've been working in the field of theatre and the events," she said.
Porro comes to Salone in a "moment of transition"
As well as working as a production supervisor for the opening of both the London 2012 and Sochi 2014 Olympic games, Porro has also created costumes and set designs for both Italian and international theatres.
"But at the same time I always kept a strong connection with my family brand and with the architect Pierro Lissoni, who I started to work with," she said. Lissoni works with the Porro family brand as an architect and designer.
"I grew up with wood shavings and looking at photoshoots in the old factory; I grew up smelling and living in this amazing design community," Porro said.
The Supersalone edition of the tradeshow starts today
Despite her knowledge of the industry, moving into her new role at Salone is a "big responsibility in a moment of transition," Porro said.
"I'm just a 'nani sulle spalle dei giganti', a little girl on the shoulders of giants," she said. "That's how I feel."
"It's a moment of transition for sure," Porro added. "A moment where we have a lot of question marks on our road, but I feel the passion and the strength of Salone del Mobile."
Appointment part of "change of generation" in industry
Porro believes her appointment as the fair's first female president is part of a wider change in the Italian design industry.
"There is a very big change of generation at this moment in the industry," Porro said. "I see a lot of female and male young entrepreneurs leading the companies."
This is a marked difference to how gender roles have traditionally been perceived in the country's design industry, where women wouldn't previously have led the companies.
"In the 1950s, women were not considered in the generational passage for some brands, so it was impossible to work in the main roles in the family brand if you were a woman," Porro said.
"My generation is the one that can change the rules – times are ready and I'm not the only one, I'm in very good company."
However, Italy still has a way to go, she believes.
"As Italians, we have to learn a lot from some foreign countries about the balance between male and female – we still have to learn a lot, but let's start to break some rules!"
Porro takes over after turbulent period
The Salone del Mobile fair, which begins today and runs until 10 September, was delayed from its original April slot.
It has been dubbed "Supersalone" to mark it out as a special edition of the fair, which has had a turbulent year. The fair's previous president Claudio Luti resigned in May, saying his vision for the fair had "failed."
Luti's leaving came after rumoured troubles for the fair in spring, with bookings from exhibitors thought to be down and visitors seemingly unlikely to travel to Italy in large numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic.
With many trade shows creating digital offerings during the Covid pandemic and the increasing climate crisis, some have also questioned the necessity of physical events, which encourage both global travel and movement of goods.
Sustainability has become something that trade shows now have to more urgently take into account.
"For a trade show it's a very big challenge to be sustainable, but it's a challenge for every field, including the field of design itself, so I think it's something that you do step by step," Porro said.
"It's a revolution; it's not something you change in one day."
Entrance to feature urban forest
The wooden panels used to construct the stands for the Supersalone fair this year are made from 100-per-cent recycled wood while the aluminium structures used for the event will be recycled. Seating areas have been assembled without using glue so that they can be disassembled and reused.
"We put a lot of attention into creating an event for which the materials and projects are all made to be fully sustainable and recyclable," Porro said.
Greenery will also welcome fair visitors right from the start, in the form of a city forest installation, a concept that has become increasingly popular recently.
"As a sort of sign, we decided to create a forest at the entrance," Porro said. "There will be 200 trees at the entrance, which Salone will then donate to the city of Milan to be planted in the Parco Nord."
Digital Supersalone to be "fully mixed" with physical event
The upcoming fair will also have more of a digital presence than in previous years.
"We wanted to create a digital identity of Salone that will be fully mixed with the physical experience and will give another layer to the physical experience. It's also going to help us to reach all the people that will not be able to come," said Porro.
The digital platform will stream some of the events taking place at the fair, and The Supersalone event will also use QR codes to make the fair shoppable.
"I think this is something we need to explore and we need to test; Supersalone will be a big test of a lot of novelties, and then we will decide which ones we will keep and which ones we will not," Porro said.
For the first time, the fair will also be open to the public every day.
"We need to feel safe living together again"
The president also hopes Supersalone will help people get back to normal after the coronavirus pandemic.
"We need to feel safe living together again, not only in private life but in common places. Design and furniture now have a role and a responsibility to redesign those places," Porro said.
"Design has a responsibility to create solutions that will let us be safe again, living together. I think we have this responsibility and Salone is the field where brands can present, experiment and discuss this very important aspect of this new life and this new normality."
Salone del Mobile is taking place in Milan from 5-10 September. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
