With many of the world's most popular and exotic spas located in Southeast Asia, travelers and spa aficionados have been inspired to recreate the luxurious ambience of the Asian spa back in their homes. In Thailand, a new development that continues to fuel the spa bathroom craze is the trend for day spas located in renovated old houses; spa-goers who see the charming ways in which tubs and steam rooms have been installed in these old houses realize that similar renovations can be achieved in their own homes.
Two directions in contemporary Asian bathroom design are currently emerging: the tropical garden bathroom and the sophisticated urban bathroom. Bathrooms following the tropical garden direction have taken inspiration from the many resorts and spas in Bali and Thailand that offer idyllic outdoor bathroom suites. These emphasize the connection to nature, and rely on natural, earthy materials for visual impact and ambience. The beautiful garden bathrooms at the Begawan Giri Estate, designed by Singapore architect Cheong Yew Kuan, are a case in point. The villas are designed around a complex of pools and water features, each offering expansive outdoor bathroom suites with waterfalls, bamboo shower-heads, tubs carved from boulders, and natural rock stepping stones, all set in the open air among a riotous profusion of fern s. Who wouldn't want to take a piece of such paradise back home with them 7
In contrast to their tropical garden counterparts, urban-style bathrooms embody the western approach to bathroom design. They are enclosed within the dwelling, sometimes with no windows or direct access to the outdoors. The common element in urban bathrooms is a sense of high-tech glamor and minimalist chic, often making use of the latest in European design such as Arne Jacobsen fixtures combined with surfaces in stainless steel, glass, cement, resin, and marble. The pages of this book are adorned with impressive examples of this: a bathroom in a Bangkok penthouse has a tubular, stainless-steel shower stall with a grey stone-tiled floor and a glass door, a striking embodiment of uber sleek, masculine chic; in a Singapore residence, an all-white bathroom with a perfectly rectilinear tub seems too pristine for actual bathing, lest the addition of a human body mars the room's beautifully proportionate lines.
In both the urban bathroom and the tropical garden variety, designers have managed to retain a unique Asian identity, often by incorporating native materials into bathroom designs with innovation and imagination. In the Philippines, where coconuts are an abundant natural material, coconut shell tiles are used in bathroom ceilings and counter tops to create an exotically textured surface that is rich in tone and soft to the touch. In Bali, gigantic stone boulders are scooped out and used as bathtubs, and wash basins are delicately lined with beautifully iridescent mother-of-pearl inlay. A bathroom floor in a Bangkok high-rise is lined with snow-white pebbles through which black stone tiles form a dramatic path to the toilet In some bathrooms, everyday objects from the Asian household have been cleverly crafted into trendy bathroom fixtures. In a home in Bangkok, a wooden table is transformed into a bathroom counter with the addition of a sandstone wash basin and a copper faucet At a beach resort in Thailand, a humble kitchen wok has taken on a new identity as a stylish wash basin.
The interplay of geometric shapes in this open air patio bathroom in Bali makes for a definitive modern statement. The ivory toned wall provides a dramatic backdrop for the green terrazzo of the vanity unit.
The see-through shower cubicle with its panel of green mosaic tiles and matching toiletries add subtle drama to the bathing experience.
Architectural firm HYLA makes the most of the relatively small guest bathroom of this house in Singapore, using a sizeable mirror to create the illusion of a much larger space. The glass panel dividing the vanity area from the shower cubicle retains the airiness of the room while protecting bathers' privacy.
Textures are important because they immediately add dimensions to the space. Plain white tiles have taken a step back while stone, terrazzo, glass, marble, wood, stainless steel and cement are now the hot new favorites among Asian bathroom designers. Glass-making techniques in Asia have developed to the point where vast panes and glass corners hitherto impossible now find their way into the contemporary Asian bathroom. Frosted green glass, once associated with retail design, adds sophistication and luxury while cement, an economical material, gives the edgy, industrial feel popular in minimal-chic bathrooms across Asia.
One of the more popular materials among designers in Asia is terrazzo. Used for centuries as flooring material, terrazzo is no newcomer to the design scene. The attractive, sleek, low-maintenance surface is versatile and economical, although extremely time-consuming to fashion. To manufacture terrazzo, marble or stone chips are embedded in concrete or cement that is cast and then smoothened and polished to a high sheen. Popular as an Art Deco flooring material in the '20s, it became popular as a warm weather material and was used extensively throughout Florida and California in the '50s and '60s building boom. In Asia, terrazzo is the material of the moment, and has transcended from humble flooring to become increasingly fashionable as the material for custom-designed tubs, vanity counter tops, walls and seating; in some cases, entire bathrooms are outfitted in terrazzo.
Another popular trend in Asia is to feature different bathroom styles within one home, so that each bathroom has its own the me and color, mood and identity. After all, the most delightful aspect of designing bathrooms is their versatile, relatively small size and multitude.
There is definitely a move toward more creative and daring bathroom designs, fueled in part by the ease and habit of global travel. With access to diverse cultures and a new taste for international styles, both homeowners and designers find inspiration from all sources. Some Asian homes boast bathrooms fully kitted out with the last word in Italian design, such as Boffi limestone basins and tubs, Hansgrohe power showers, and Alessi ceramic fixtures, while others stick closely to local ethnic themes, installing items of traditional Asian decor such as antique hand-carved shutters and Japanese wooden tubs in homes nestled in bustling cities. Still other bathrooms exhibit a successful cross-fertilization of design lines, developing an "ethno-modern" approach. For example, an antique Indian door acquired from Kerala makes an alluring entrance to the creamy modern interior of a Kuala Lumpur bathroom that combines Indian antiques with Philippe Starck fixtures to delightful effect.
Undeterred by the restrictions of a metropolitan environment, designers and homeowners in Singapore and Bangkok have succeeded in merging part of the bathroom with the outdoors, whether through the use of outdoor showers, sliding doors, or picture windows that open out to lush gardens. In one Bangkok penthouse the bathtub is located on an open balcony, with a sliding glass wall partitioning off the bedroom on the other side, allowing the owners to enjoy an outdoor soak with a view of the city spreading below them. Heavily influenced by Southeast Asia's stunning tropical resorts and spas, city sybarites in metropolitan Asia are now insisting on outdoor showers in their metropolitan homes and high-rise apartments, with the trend traveling further afield to Florida, California and around the US.
The round, green tinted glass wash basins against the marble counter top add a touch that is elegant yet playful and fun at the same time, cleverly enhanced by the halo of filtered light shining through the glass.
The shadow of the louvers adds interest to the simple and elegant combination of marble, glass and mirror in this bathroom. The cool white marble of the counter top is enhanced by the dark colored accessories, and the linearity of the design, by the rounded outlines of the sink, glasses and toiletries.
Contemporary Asian bathrooms are riding the crest of a new
