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The Miami Art Journal

The House

East Sussex cabin features rooftop bathing terrace

The Editors ·

East Sussex cabin features rooftop bathing terrace

A report this week details Bathers Cabin, a woodland structure in East Sussex designed by British studio Built Works. The building is sheathed in blackened larch and topped with a lush rooftop terrace fitted with a sauna, hot tub, and ice bath. Visitors enter via this planted roof terrace, which the architects state is devoted entirely to the ritual of bathing.

The cabin sits at the foot of a steep bank adjacent to a small stream on Great Park Farm. This positioning allows guests to arrive at roof level before descending inside, creating an interplay between the building and the site’s changing levels. The rooftop is coloured with mosses, grasses, and ferns relocated directly from the plot, creating the feeling that the woodland floor had been lifted into place.

The blocky form is modelled on 1960s granaries on the site and others nearby. Its tiered facade was crafted from larch sourced from a local sawmill and blackened with pine tar. The studio notes that the stepped form softens the cabin’s silhouette, allowing it to merge gradually with the surrounding woodland, particularly at night.

Inside, the plan is arranged in a cross that frames views to the north, south, east, and west. The design organizes various functions around an open central point, with doors kept to a minimum to ensure the cabin is as open as possible. Curtains provide soft divisions where privacy is needed.

The project is part of a group of wooden structures designed by Built Works for Architects Holiday, its hospitality company. Other structures on the farm include Yogi’s Cabin, built around a yoga studio, and the Drying Shed Sauna. The raised boardwalk on the roof allows guests to move through the planting and become completely immersed in the bathing ritual.

Source: Dezeen