Treehouse Sauna
Oita, Japan
in collaboration with Ao Tonkachi
The Treehouse & Sauna consists of two treehouses. The upper left serves as a relaxation space, while the lower right is the sauna room. Inside the sauna room, a wood-burning stove, fuelled by scrap materials, maintains a temperature of 80–100°C. This project was made possible through the collaboration of over 50 university students, numerous technicians, material suppliers, and the local community.
This project started 2021during COVID-19. We recognized that the isolated environment was having a major effect on university life and initiated this project to provide a temporary creative space where students could express their creativity and reconnect with various people. Through online discussions with university students, the treehouse was chosen as the building type, symbolizing an “asylum” and reflecting the situation at the time. It was also an ideal choice for utilizing otherwise worthless, steep, and unused mountain land, where construction on the ground was not feasible.
In the remote mountains, far from the city, students worked with their own hands and local materials. This experience helped them understand the origins of all materials and the importance of human labour in the construction process, boosting their confidence. After its completion, it was opened up to the public. It gained widespread recognition through coverage in magazines and TV programs. In the future, the project will be handed over to the local community to be utilized for future purposes.
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