Introduction to the Therme Vals

Basic Information:

Name: Therme Vals
Location: Graubünden, Switzerland
Architect: Peter Zumthor with Marc Loeliger, Thomas Durisch and Rainer Weitschies Dates of construction: 1993-1996

Program:

Spa

Purpose and Function:

The spa complex in Vals is constructed over the thermal springs in Graubünden. Five-hotel complexes surround the spa. After buying the hotels from the bankrupt property developer Karl Vorlop, the villagers commissioned a hydrotherapy center to attract new visitors. 

Peter Zumthor designed the spa with a central concern in mind: "Mountain, stone, water – building in stone, building with stone, building into the mountain, building out of the mountain, being in the mountain – how can all the associations and all the sensuousness which these words evoke be translated into a building, that is to say, interpreted in architectural terms?" 

Zumthor answers his question in the final product. Designed to resemble a quarry, the building stands in harmony with the natural environment. The grass-laden roof paired with the "buried" position of the complex produces a kind of primal effect, as if the spa existed before the hotel and even the village. Composed of the locally-sourced Valser quarzite slabs, Therme Vals is an example of the essential yet basic elements of rock and water combining to produce a relaxing environment.