Architectural Cases

Along Sweden's Skellefte River, a unique artistic creation, the Lithium Crystal Sauna, emerges as a focal point within WasteLand, an innovative climate action park. This remarkable structure, envisioned by artists Bigert & Bergström, is an integral component of the park's dedication to ecological restoration. WasteLand, established on the former Scharin industrial site, has undergone a seventeen-year rehabilitation process, evolving into a vibrant public space for art, environmental initiatives, and community engagement. The sauna's distinctive design, echoing the form of a lithium crystal, beautifully captures the surrounding natural elements and serves as a powerful symbol of renewal.

Functioning as the park's permanent centerpiece, the sauna's opening coincides with the Society Expo 2026, under the guiding principle of 'From Waste to Promise.' This project highlights a profound connection between technology and human well-being, as lithium, a vital element in modern energy systems, also has historical ties to mental health treatments. The sauna's exterior, crafted from stainless steel mirrors with a pink titanium finish, reflects its surroundings while its interior provides a warm, inviting grotto of alder and heartwood pine. This thoughtful construction, complete with flint and olivine stones, copper, glass, and LEDs, seamlessly merges artistic expression with practical utility, offering a shared sanctuary where energy, resource extraction, and communal ritual converge on a human scale.

Beyond the sauna, WasteLand features various installations that interpret Sweden's landscape through themes of repair and future possibilities. Bigert & Bergström's other contributions, like 'Rundgång' and 'Broken Greenhouse,' explore climate scenarios through sculptural environments. Together with reclaimed trees, plants, and play structures, these elements contribute to a broader public setting, fostering a renewed appreciation for the remediated land. The Lithium Crystal Sauna, much like Bigert & Bergström's earlier 'Solar Egg' project, which addressed the relocation of Kiruna due to mining, continues their artistic legacy of transforming climate and social issues into tangible, communal experiences.

This pioneering project not only exemplifies environmental remediation and innovative design but also fosters a sense of collective responsibility and community. By transforming a historically polluted area into a place of beauty and gathering, the Lithium Crystal Sauna inspires contemplation on our relationship with nature and resources. It underscores the potential for art and architecture to catalyze positive change, creating spaces that invite reflection, connection, and a hopeful vision for a sustainable future.

The Tokyo-based design studio we+, founded by Toshiya Hayashi and Hokuto Ando, champions a unique philosophy toward materials. Rather than merely treating them as raw resources to be molded, the studio views materials as active collaborators from whom valuable insights can be gained. Their diverse projects, which incorporate everything from microalgae pigments and industrial refuse to Styrofoam, seaweed, and even atmospheric mist, consistently challenge conventional design paradigms. They demonstrate how the intrinsic properties of materials can guide and influence the creative journey, rather than being passively subjected to pre-determined forms.

For we+, the notion of 'craft' transcends traditional definitions or nostalgic interpretations. It represents a dynamic methodology for interacting with materials, fostering an understanding of their characteristics through direct engagement and creation. The design team explains that this hands-on practice, involving physical interaction and manipulation, builds knowledge and skill, allowing for materials to be given form. They posit that craft, in its modern context, signifies a thoughtful stance on engaging with contemporary society through material intervention, extending beyond mere technical expertise to encompass a profound dialogue with the physical world.

Transforming Overlooked Resources Through Innovative Material Engagement

The core ethos of we+ is vividly reflected across their body of work, frequently initiating with materials that are typically disregarded or undervalued. These include living organisms, discarded matter, industrial by-products, and transient atmospheric conditions. For instance, in their 'SO-Colored' initiative, vibrant hues are naturally extracted from microalgae, presenting a sustainable alternative to artificial pigments. The 'REMAINS' project reimagines waste excavated from Tokyo’s landfills, converting it into advanced composite materials and uncovering unforeseen potential within the city’s discarded resources. Similarly, 'Refoam' repurposes expanded polystyrene, commonly associated with packaging and single-use items, into functional furniture and artistic objects. What unites these diverse undertakings is not a singular aesthetic style, but a shared dedication to working with what has been conventionally overlooked. The designers articulate their approach as a "reconstruction of our relationship with materials," prioritizing those neglected in the relentless pursuit of efficiency and uncovering the often-hidden processes behind their creation.

In this context, waste is not merely perceived as an issue to be resolved but as a valuable resource brimming with untapped potential. The creative team at we+ explains that projects such as 'Refoam,' which engage with urban waste, recognize discarded materials as a distinctive, indigenous resource of contemporary Tokyo. By directly processing these materials, the designers actively explore the novel forms and inherent values that can emerge from them. Even when collaborating with established craft industries, their focus often extends beyond the final products to encompass the artisans’ tools, by-products, and daily practices, where fresh perspectives on creation can be discovered. This profound interest in the creative process also extends to projects involving less conventional mediums. In 'SEAWEED LUMINOUS,' seaweed is harmoniously combined with traditional Japanese craft techniques to create an illuminated installation that is shaped by natural growth patterns and material variations. Meanwhile, 'WAFT' utilizes mist as its primary medium, crafting an environment that dynamically transforms with changes in temperature, airflow, and humidity. These projects transcend the production of static forms, instead investigating how materials and environmental factors continue to influence and evolve the artwork long after its initial creation.

The Dynamic Interplay Between Traditional Craftsmanship and Digital Fabrication

A fundamental aspect of we+’s methodology involves an ongoing dialogue between traditional craftsmanship and contemporary digital fabrication techniques. The studio emphasizes that both traditional and technologically advanced Japanese manufacturing are characterized by an exceptional commitment to quality, highlighting a shared cultural foundation of precision and meticulous attention. However, they also identify a crucial distinction: traditional craft, by its very nature, involves direct, tactile engagement with materials, inherently allowing for a degree of uncertainty. The natural variations in materials and the unforeseen occurrences during the making process are not considered imperfections but are embraced as integral and enriching qualities of the final work. This perspective acknowledges the beauty that arises from the unpredictable aspects of manual creation, fostering a deeper connection with the material and the process.

Conversely, digital fabrication often strives to minimize these inherent variations, aiming for exact replication and uniformity. It is precisely within this contrast that we+ identifies a significant opportunity for innovation. The studio constantly interrogates how, even when employing highly sophisticated digital technologies, materials can retain their inherent richness, depth, and subtle unpredictability. Rather than outright rejecting technology, they explore innovative ways for digital processes to complement and interact with the natural irregularities that emerge through the act of making. They are also meticulous in not universally categorizing every digital process as ‘craft.’ The designers note that fully automated digital fabrication frequently excludes the human body from the creative process. Without this crucial physical engagement, it becomes significantly more challenging for variations or accidental qualities to become meaningful components of the finished piece. Consequently, they express reservations about labeling entirely automated digital fabrication as ‘craft.’ Instead, the studio actively seeks forms of collaboration between digital technologies and manual processes. They firmly believe that new forms of craft can arise when digital fabrication embraces, rather than suppresses, unpredictability. This can manifest through machine errors, variations in output, or, most profoundly, through a genuine synergy between advanced digital methods and skilled handwork.