The Award SMALL of the Estonian Association of Architects 2024
The Annual Award of the Cultural Endowment of Estonia in Architecture 2024
Architecture
Kaisa Sööt, Liina-Liis Urke, Margit Säde, Regina Viljasaar-Frenzel
Structural design
Consultant Simo Ilomets
Commissioned by
MTÜ Kuum ja külm
Construction
Gert Pottmann, Cocon Life
Total area
56m2
Design
2023
Completed
2023
Photos
Aadam Kaarma, Margit Säde, Tõnu Tunnel
Location
Logi 13, Tallinn

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Logi Sauna is a simple public sauna built on citizen initiative by the sea in the centre of Tallinn. The design and construction as well as the daily upkeep have been a collective initiative, with the authors of the project also responsible for heating the sauna three times a week with the help of volunteers.

Bringing together various sauna knowledge and experience, it is a space accommodating exactly as little as possible and as much as necessary. There is no running water or electricity, you can dip into the sea and use candles to ward off darkness. The steam room overlooks the sea through the trees. The landscape has been intervened as little as possible, leaving also a birch tree growing through the roof of the building.

The temporary wooden house has been built in a way that allows the heated section to be moved as a whole, while the shed around the sauna can be similarly set up in a new location, if needed. Although the shed is a functional space for changing clothes, storing firewood and organising events, it also provides shelter from the sea and possible vandalism. The large double doors give the building flexibility while the open arched door signals that the sauna is hot and open to visitors.

It is an attempt to create a public space by the sea in Tallinn that supports solitude as well as companionship, rest and activity. Offering an alternative to digital life, it makes us notice urban nature and allows us to spend more time in the city centre by the sea.

Text by: Kaisa Sööt, Liina-Liis Urke, Margit Säde, Regina Viljasaar-Frenzel