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    Space Popular uses green tones throughout Infinity Wellbeing spa in Bangkok

    A tropical garden can be seen from within this spa in Sukhumvit, Bangkok, which architecture studio Space Popular has designed with soothing green and white treatment rooms.Infinity Wellbeing is set within a building on one of the side streets, or “sois”, that lead off Sukhumvit’s main road.
    It is entered via a luscious garden planted with dragon trees and lipstick palms, which Space Popular hopes will offset the shops, food vendors and towering skyscrapers that cluster around the spa.

    Above image: the garden that surrounds the spa’s entrance. Top image: one of the spa’s treatment rooms.

    “Designing the arrival and departure sequence is perhaps the most challenging element as the interior ambience is highly contrasting with the bustling street atmosphere in Bangkok,” the studio’s founders, Lara Lesmes and Fredrik Hellberg, told Dezeen.
    “Through the leaves of the garden, the spa is in strong contrast to the street with its often chaotic collage of sounds and sights.”

    The spa’s reception is decked out in calming shades of green and white
    The leafy plants also help obscure views through to the interior of the spa, where the studio has continued the calming ambience by utilising a serene colour palette of off-whites and pastel greens.
    Lesmes and Hellberg were particularly inspired to use the colour after coming across a local green-hued marble.

    Chairs in the spa are part of Space Popular’s latest furniture collection
    At the centre of the reception area is a fluted white service counter. Sheer white curtains have then been hung at the peripheries of the room, serving as a backdrop to customer seating areas.
    The accompanying armchairs, recliners and bar stools are all from Space Popular’s latest range of furniture called The Second Collection. Each piece features a tubular mint-green framework and “petroleum-blue” upholstery.

    Mint-green timber louvres line the spa’s corridors
    Green tube-like bases also feature on the stone-topped side tables dotted throughout the room, which also come as part of The Second Collection.

    Space Popular designs world’s first VR architecture conference as alternative to “boring” Zoom talks

    A contrasting pop of colour is provided by the copper-tone grid that runs across the reception’s backlit ceiling. Stems of the grid extend down and away from the ceiling to form overhead lamps.

    Green-terrazzo vanity units feature in the spa’s treatment rooms
    Corridors lined with mint-coloured timber louvres lead through to Infinity Wellbeing’s white-painted treatment rooms, most of which have been finished with vanity stands and washbasins crafted from green terrazzo.
    The garden-facing massage rooms are slightly moodier in tone – walls are clad in dark teal acoustic panels, while packaging foam is used to create coffered ceilings. Space Popular said it wanted to juxtapose high-end and humble materials like this from the outset of the project.
    “It’s a contrast often seen throughout Bangkok, which despite its abundance of luxury and shine manages to maintain its agility and inventiveness through its market and street food culture,” the studio explained.

    The moody massage rooms have up-close views of the garden
    Only one of the treatment rooms, which boasts sandy-pink walls, diverts from the colour palette seen in the rest of the spa. It also has a dramatic tiered ceiling which staggers upwards into a cone-like shape.
    “[The room] had very particular constraints due to where it was located – it doesn’t face the garden – so we decided to turn it into its own world,” added Space Popular.

    A tiered ceiling is the focal point of another treatment room
    This is the second branch that the studio has designed for the spa company. The first location, which is simply titled Infinity, was completed back in 2017. It’s situated in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district, occupying a pair of traditional Thai shophouses.
    More recently Space Popular has designed the venue for Punto de Inflexión, the first-ever architecture conference to be held in virtual reality.
    Photography is by Wison Tungthunya.

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  • Rattan yoga pods create “space of captivating calmness” for studio in Bangkok

    Thai architecture studio Enter Projects Asia has used rattan to enclose a series of studios for yoga brand Vikasa at its headquarters in Bangkok.Enter Projects Asia used rattan – a type of climbing plant with a flexible woody stem – as the main material to break up a 450-square-metre space in a triangular-shaped block in downtown Bangkok into a series of yoga studios.
    The studio is shortlisted for leisure and wellness interior of the year at Dezeen Awards 2020.

    Rattan was used to enclose private yoga studios
    Supported on a frame of Thai timber, the material was used to partition two public yoga studios and fully enclose two smaller, private studios.

    The architecture studio wrapped the spaces in the natural material to create “an urban oasis in the chaos of Bangkok – a retreat from the grind”.

    Rattan was chosen as it can be found on the island of Koh Samui of the east coast of the country, where yoga brand Vikasa had a retreat.
    “All elements of the project were made from natural, local materials to be a hub or a portal for their existing location, which is based on a hillside in Koh Samui: Thai hardwood, local black slate, bamboo and most notably, rattan,” said Enter Projects Asia design director Patrick Keane.
    “The result is a space of captivating calmness, cloaked in quiet contentment – an oasis of tranquillity amongst the chaos of Bangkok,” he told Dezeen.

    The studio’s reception has a rattan desk and light feature
    Along with the pods, rattan was used to create light fittings in the studios and a large, sinuous desk that dominates the reception area.
    The desk becomes a bench for those waiting for classes and turns into a light feature that winds its way above the reception area,  ending in a woven lampshade above the main staircase.

    The rattan light feature hangs above the stairs
    The three-dimensional rattan forms were created in collaboration with specialist furniture designer Project Rattan by combining traditional weaving techniques with digital design.

    CO-LAB Design Office creates bamboo yoga pavilion in Tulum

    “We facilitated the fusion of 3D technologies with local Thai craftsmanship to bring nature to an urban context,” explained Keane.
    “We worked using 3D software, special effects modelling namely Maya and Rhino. Frames and templates were all printed on giant templates for the craftspeople to use as guides for their weaving techniques.”

    The rattan desk turns into a bench
    Overall, Enter Projects Asia hopes that it has created a space that communicates a sense of spirituality
    “It embraces all five senses, with soft geometry to counter hard urban edges, tactile materials that are touchable and natural, the smell of nature, and the technical acoustics – as good as a radio station – and the food and beverage Vikasa provides,” said Keane.

    Rattan forms are visible from outside the building
    The studios occupy the first floor of Vikasa’s headquarters, which has a cafe area on the ground floor, with the rattan forms designed to be visible through large glass windows from the street.
    Previous yoga studios on Dezeen include a bamboo pavilion nestled in the jungle in Tulum designed by CO-Lab Design Office and a muted studio with a textured sisal ceiling in Melbourne.
    Photography by Edmund Sumner.
    Project credits:
    Interiors architecture and design: Enter Projects AsiaDesign director: Patrick KeaneDesign team: Tomas Guevara, Azul Paklaian, Archana Ramesh, Sergio LissoneLocal craftsmanship: Project RattanBuilders: Enter Projects, Ian SykesEngineer: Lincoln ScottConsultants: Ian Sykes BuilderCollaborators: Project Rattan

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  • Thomas Juul-Hansen opts for earthy tones in Bangkok's Scope Langsuan apartments

    Dezeen promotion: the interiors of the Scope Langsuan residential building have been designed by Thomas Juul-Hansen, his first project in Thailand.Located in the heart of Bangkok’s city centre, the soon-to-be-completed development for Scope is situated on a piece of the most expensive freehold land in the city.

    Danish designer Thomas Juul-Hansen was behind the interior design for Scope Langsuan, which will feature a calming colour palette of warm, sandy hues and muted pastel tones.

    Juul-Hansen has selected fittings and furniture to complement this colour palette from brands such as Minotti, Walter Knoll and Poliform, as well as designing some bespoke furniture pieces for each unit in the development.
    The Copenhagen-born designer was previously responsible for the interior design of New York’s 75-story skyscraper One57, nicknamed The Billionaire Building, which reached completion in 2014.

    Global architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) was design consultant for the building itself, which will accommodate 158 residences across 34 floors.
    “We’re a disruptive developer, focusing exclusively on designing and building top, international standard premium homes,” said Scope CEO Yongyutt Chaipromprasith.
    “We cater to a new generation of homeowners who seek design and build quality that match the very best available in New York or London,” he added. “So, we’ve teamed up with the best partners in the world.”

    Scheduled for completion in early 2023, the block will have one-bedroom residences sized at around 83 square metres, while two-bedroom apartments are sized at 153 to 162 square metres. Penthouse residences will be between 419 to 443 square metres.
    All apartments will have floor-to-ceiling windows and ceiling heights of 3.5 metres, with four metres for the penthouses.

    A wine cellar, cloakroom, cigar storage, piano room and 25-seat auditorium will be found on the third floor of the complex, while a fitness centre, temperature-control pool, business lounge and kids room will be located on the fourth floor.
    Thirty levels up, on the 34th floor, is a sky lounge, private kitchen and dining area and a barbecue deck.

    In the living spaces, the kitchens feature furniture by German manufacturer Bulthaup, as well as kitchen appliances from Gaggenau and Sub-Zero.
    The bedrooms also include built-in closets by Italian furniture manufacturer Lema, and luxury bathrooms designed by TOTO.

    Scope Langsuan will also offer a range of lifestyle facilities and five-star services, including maid and cleaning services, receptionists, 24-hour comprehensive security, and valet parking.
    “Scope Langsuan will be one of Thailand’s highest quality condominium developments with its clean and open simplicity, functionality, international good taste, and searingly close attention to details,” Chaipromprasith added.

    Located at the centre of the city on Lang Suan road, Scope Langsuan is 140 metres – just a two-minute walk – from the city’s BTS Skytrain and rail transit system.
    The complex will be positioned within minutes’ walk of Bangkok’s most prestigious retail avenue, Ploenchit Road, as well as the Central Embassy, Siam Center and Central Chidlom.Bangkok’s popular central Lumpini Park is also “only a straight-line jog away” at the end of Langsuan Road.
    For more information about Scope Langsuan can be found on the company’s website.

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    Scope unveils luxurious clubhouse inside its Langsuan condominium development

    Dezeen promotion: developer Scope has revealed designs for a new 2,500-square-metre clubhouse located inside its Scope Langsuan development in Bangkok, Thailand. Situated in Bangkok’s city centre, the 34-storey Scope Langsuan condominium development is being built on the most expensive piece of freehold land in the city. It is scheduled for completion in early 2023. The most recent […] More