A Study on Space of Healing focused on Light and Sense in Contemporary Spa Design

빛과 감각을 중심으로 한 현대 스파(Spa) 디자인의 치유 공간 구현에 관한 연구

In contemporary society, spa has become one of the important healing spaces. As the present urban life has been more and more complex and competitive, space of recreation and healing are dramatically increased in terms of its number as well as location. In the past, there were three kinds of spa visitors. The first was the people who visited spas for medical reasons. The second was the people who visited spas for leisure and refreshment. The third was for social gatherings like in the ancient Rome. In present time, these three reasons are mixed together. As the spa program became rich and various, visitors tends to seek an appropriate spa environment that suits their needs. This is the main background for contemporary spa designs. In any case, concept of healing has been always the core element in spa. Light and sense have vital role to make a unique spa design. This paper aims to study different light and sense applications in contemporary spa designs. Specific focus is to find how light and sense in spa designs act to create a healing environment. 4 spa projects built in Europe after 2000 were selected and were analyzed based on the 4 light and sense characteristics. In conclusion, case analysis was summarized to suggest future possibilities.