Swimming pools and geothermal baths in Iceland as an element of public space. Functional, spatial and landscape solutions conducive to social contacts

Bathing and swimming pools are a common element of social infrastructure of many of Iceland’s localities. Their function is not limited to recreation and sports. Thanks to their spread, low admission costs, as well as the attractiveness of hot baths in the cold climate, open public pools are a type...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Środowisko Mieszkaniowe
Main Author: Homiński, B.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:Polish
Published: Politechnika Krakowska im. Tadeusza Kościuszki. Wydział Architektury. Katedra Kształtowania Środowiska Mieszkaniowego 2018
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.4467/25438700SM.18.065.9655
https://bibliotekanauki.pl/articles/345043.pdf
https://bibliotekanauki.pl/articles/345043
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Summary:Bathing and swimming pools are a common element of social infrastructure of many of Iceland’s localities. Their function is not limited to recreation and sports. Thanks to their spread, low admission costs, as well as the attractiveness of hot baths in the cold climate, open public pools are a type of public spaces that are specific to Iceland. They compensate for the lack of traditionally understood urban spaces in localities and settlements that feature a dispersed structure of low density. Using tools such as the multiple-case study with the application of the techniques of analysing literature and architectural drawings, on-site visits and non-participatory observation, the author analysed the architectural and landscape solutions applied in three built projects featuring open-air pools and bathing facilities in Iceland in terms of their ascribed public, integrating and social function. As a result of the analysis, the author determined that: the functional programme of the pool is not commonly supplemented by accompanying functions, such as, for instance, coffee shops; the design solutions of the bathing facilities include pools and Jacuzzi or hot tubs of varying size, shape and orientation relative to the structure; the common characteristic of the analysed structures was the visual connection of the bathing facilities and the hot tubs with the landscape. Baseny kąpielowe i pływackie są powszechnym elementem infrastruktury społecznej wielu miejscowości w Islandii. Pełnią nie tylko funkcję rekreacyjną i sportową. Dzięki swojej powszechności, niskiemu kosztowi dostępu, a także atrakcyjności gorących kąpieli w chłodnym klimacie, otwarte publiczne baseny są rodzajem specyficznych dla Islandii przestrzeni publicznych. Rekompensują one niedostatki tradycyjnie rozumianej przestrzeni miejskiej w miejscowościach i osadach o rozproszonej strukturze. Wykorzystując narzędzia wielokrotnych studiów przypadków, z zastosowaniem technik analizy literatury i rysunku architektonicznego, wizyt w terenie i obserwacji ...