I FEEL GOOD!
THE WORLD OF WELLNESS CENTRES THROUGH TWO PROJECTS BY MARIO BOTTA and MATTEO THUN
From 24th June to 31st July Mario Botta and Matteo Thun are the protagonists of I FEEL GOOD, the exhibition dedicated to the world of wellness centres promoted by FMG Fabbrica Marmi e Graniti at its gallery on Milan’s Via Bergognone. Spazio FMG thus continues its journey through the words of contemporary architecture by focusing on the recent works of two master architects: the Tschuggen Bergoase Wellness Centre at Arosa, designed by Mario Botta in Switzerland (2003-2006) and Matteo Thun’s Vigilius Mountain Resort in Italy’s Alto Adige region (2003).
“Built during the last few years and both in the Alps, the projects featured in the exhibition are examples of an approach that views architecture as a new fragment of the landscape, combined with an idea of the project as a piece of craftsmanship in its attention to details, skilful use of materials, and vision of space as a location for human-centred experiences,” explains Luca Molinari.
With the Tschuggen Bergoase Wellness Centre at Arosa, Mario Botta interprets his project as a new yet ancient Alpine monument, which uses a material fitted to the place yet also constructs a space with a strongly contemporary spirit, shaped by clear, rigorous geometric principles.
On the other hand, with the Vigilius Mountain Resort in Alto Adige, Matteo Thun interprets the theme as a form of almost whispered dialogue with the location, with an extreme attention to the environmental quality and compatibility of the materials used and the built environment created.
In both cases, the subject of spa centres and new locations for wellness becomes an interesting opportunity for giving shape to spaces that express the desires and anxieties of the contemporary lifestyle.
On 24th June, FMG will be joining the exhibition’s curators and featured architecture firms from 9.15 pm at the Province of Milan Order of Architects headquarters at Via Solferino 19, for a meeting and debate.
For the first time, FMG will be hosting I FEEL GOOD not only at its gallery on Via Bergognone but also on-line on the site www.spaziofmg.com, accompanied by a large selection of wellness centre projects built in different parts of the world. The on-line exhibition thus extends the survey of the wellness architecture sector, which is ideally suited to the stylistic and technical characteristics of the FMG materials. The FMG production technology, covered by international patents, allows the generation of factory-made granites, marbles, stones and travertines that combine the naturalness of stone with unique technical values, that meet the needs of the wellness sector: non-absorbency (meaning excellent hygiene and ease of cleaning), frost resistance (meaning the capacity to withstand variations in temperature even in extreme conditions), resistance to wear, deep abrasion, stains and acids, and hardness and durability that surpass those of quarried stone. What’s more, the FMG Design division is able to develop special products, even custom-sized and tailor-made items, to meet the wellness sector’s need for key elements such as pool edges, gratings, drainage channels, washbasins, shower bases, special walkways, steps, etc.
Mario Botta
WELLNESS CENTRE
TSCHUGGEN BERGOASE AT AROSA
Mario Botta’s Tschuggen Bergoase wellness centre stands in the natural hollow of the Arosa valley, in the Swiss Alps, and takes the form of a completely underground building, alongside the existing hotel.
Only a few simple features emerge above the ground, and reflect the natural shapes of the landscape, where light plays a fundamental role. What would normally be considered a large building disappears into the earth, with only these “antennae” of mechanical structures and plants emerging, the outward sign for the village of a public leisure facility.
The interior is shaped as a large terraced hall, which follows the slope of the ground to reduce the amount of excavation needed. The various sectors of the Bergoase lead into each other without a break, and have a special, striking relationship to the outside environment, provided by the large “antennae”, while providing natural lighting and an extraordinary view of the Alpine landscape and atmosphere.
As well as the “unbuilt” space of the leaves, the new building overcomes the problem of its relationship to the existing hotel and the ground by means of a large natural stonewall. The outdoor public area is thus attractively redesigned, and the problem of the car parks is also solved by discretely integrating them in the project.
Matteo Thun
VIGILIUS MOUNTAIN RESORT
The Vigilius Mountain Resort by Matteo Thun is a building immersed in the silence of the Alps, in the Alto Adige region. Isolated and secluded, in a forest clearing, the hotel is only accessible by means of a cable-car or a path that winds its way through the woods. On reaching the clearing, one has the impression that the building cannot be distinguished from its natural surroundings: the stunning landscape of white peaks and deep valleys all around provides a good match for the materials chosen to build this enchanted, magical place.
The top priority was to build a structure highly compatible with the surrounding environment, not only with regard to the choice of materials, but also through very close attention to all the hotel’s technical systems. In fact, the Vigilius is Italy’s first and only hotel to hold Class A certification.
Its technical features are a highly efficient insulating shell (e.g. triple-glazed windows), the use of biomass for heating, and efficient ventilation with energy recycling.
The air used for the controlled ventilation of the individual rooms is preheated in winter and precooled in summer, by means of a geothermal heat exchanger. This method allows savings on heat consumption of about 40-50% compared to conventional hotels with a pool-spa section.
Comment by Luca Molinari
The world of wellness, urban spas and bodily beauty care centres has never been the focus of so much attention from the public and the media as in the last ten years. Contemporary architecture has taken the opportunity to come to grips with a type of architecture with an ancient tradition, which has roots in ancient Rome and passes through the Muslim world before reaching the splendours of Nineteenth Century spa towns and the sophisticated hotels-des-bains built in central Europe in the early years of the last century.
Today, contemporary spas and wellness centres express metropolitan’s man longing to reconstruct a dimension of pleasure and care for one’s body, which merges into the absolute need for “slow living”, the silent savouring of portions of life hard-won from the dizzying confusion of today’s world.
Spa architecture, a unique language, has offered an opportunity for fresh experimentation for many architects, both famous and up-and-coming, called upon to construct original fragments of built environment immersed in a landscape, or locations concealed in the belly of a metropolis, where the relationship with natural light, sounds, smells and the senses in general become an unusual material with which to shape space.
This has inevitably led to the innovative use of new materials, capable of improving the quality of life in wellness centres, giving added sophistication, health and safety to the relationship with these locations created to provide unique, restful experiences.
SpazioFMG per l’Architettura
Via Bergognone 27, Milan
24th June – 31st July 2009
Tuesday – Saturday 3.00 – 8.00 pm
No Entrance Charge
Information: 02 89410320
Vernissage
Wednesday 24th June - 6.30 pm
Meeting
Province of Milan
Order of Architects (Planners, Conservators, Landscape Architects)
Via Solferino 19, Milan
24th June - 9.15 pm
