Once the summer is in full swing, with its longer days and temperatures nearing or even reaching the triple digits, there are few things that bring relief like jumping into a cool body of water. While nature provides us with oceans and rivers and lakes, pools are architecture’s answer. Civilization’s earliest pools date back to 2600 B.C. and are believed to have been constructed for religious rituals and purification purposes. Later pools were built for recreation, athletic training and personal fitness. Today, pools are one of the most sought-after amenities a residence or hotel can include. Who doesn’t check out the pool before buying a new house or choosing where to stay on vacation? There are the modern pools that almost disappear into the land, interior pools reminiscent of those at ancient baths, retro-style pools that hearken back to those captured in Slim Aarons’ famous photographs… For our June post, following a sweltering few weeks of heat in the northeast, we got to thinking about pools, whether those we’ve visited and taken a dip in ourselves, or others we’ve admired from afar. Below is a selection of our some of our architects’ and designers’ favorites.
The Raleigh Hotel Pool
I’ve always liked the pool at the Raleigh Hotel in Miami Beach which was designed by Lawrence Murray Dixon in 1940 in Art Deco style. Set in a concrete deck and surrounded by palm trees, it has an old-time glamour to it with a curved shape and bold black trim and has been called a masterpiece. Interesting features include a waterfall, a pool bar, and lining the perimeter, an 8”-deep shelf for sunbathing. The hotel is currently closed, and its fate is unknown at the moment, but I was lucky to have visited with my wife on vacation years ago. Photo: Jonathan Ducrest Fine Art Photography
-Scot
Dalmation Coast House Pool
This pool always comes up in my mind as such an extraordinary idea, in a spectacular setting. Its located on a property on Lopud Island in Croatia. It was built into the ruins of a 15th-century stone house and incorporates locally reclaimed stone from the 4th century. The landscaping includes trees, shrubs and lavender bushes which add to the warmth of the overall outdoor space. Photo: Scott Frances / OTTO.
-William
The pool at Philip Johnson’s Glass House
The pool at The Glass House is one of my favorites, for a few reasons. When visiting on a summer day, when the sky is blue and the surrounding landscape is lush green, this delightful oasis is in all its glory. It’s located in the northeast corner of the yard, like a piece of art, minimal in design but also bold, almost flush with the ground, a perfect circle in bright aquamarine. With a diameter of 33 feet and a depth of just under six-and-a-half feet, it was built for swimming, but I can easily imagine that it was a perfect pool for lounging and cooling off. If only they would let visitors jump in!
-Andrea
A favorite pool I’ve had the joy of visiting is at Villa Necchi in Milan, Italy. The property is beautifully landscaped with the pool courtyard as a focal point at the front entry. You’re in the heart of Milan, yet the house’s surrounding walls and lush greenery give you the privacy and calm of being in the countryside. At stone ledge offers seating around the perimeter of the pool and the greater patio area offers plenty of space for gathering. It’s easy to imagine how when the house was actually lived in, that entertaining around the pool was effortless and completely centered on family living. Photo: photolime / Alamy
-Allison
The pool at the Stahl House, a.k.a. Case Study House #22 by Pierre Koenig , as pictured in this iconic photograph by Julius Shulman, is to me, the essence of what California represented in post-war America. Everything new, everything modern, looking out into the promise of endless possibilities. Photo: © J. Paul Getty Trust. Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles (2004.R.10)
-Rob
Leça Swimming Pools
I am not much of a swimmer, but I was deeply impressed by the Leça Swimming Pools, located Porto, Portugal. I had a chance to see them while on a trip there last year. These natural pools, which are filled with fresh sea water, were designed by Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira and completed in 1966. What makes them so special is how they are rooted in the grand coastline like land sculptures, where the boundaries between the waves and the rocks become beautifully blurred. This complex was Siza’s first winning competition project as a young architect, and it remains the most unique swimming pool I have ever seen.
-Jinyu
Tony Dapolito Recreation Center Pool
My favorite pool is one that offers an example of a great artist’s work made accessible to the public. In 1987, Keith Haring painted a 170-foot mural at the Tony Dapolito Recreation Center in the West Village. The artwork spans the length of the pool deck and shows figures dancing among fish and dolphins in Haring’s signature style with bold black lines and pops of color—this one in blue and yellow, so fitting for a hot summer day. I haven’t had the pleasure of swimming in this pool, but I see it as an important piece of art history. The center is currently closed for renovations and its preservation is uncertain, but the city has pledged to incorporate the mural into future uses of this site. Considering how important Keith Haring was to New York’s art scene and the fact that this is one of only few works that remains of more than 50 that he painted throughout the city, my hope is that it will live on for generations to come. Photo: “Carmine Street Pool” by robzand is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
-Kim
Pool at Arango-Marbrisa House
John Lautner designed this pool to compliment this amazing house overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Acapulco, Mexico. He had conceived of the vanishing edge pool for several earlier houses; Silvertop in L.A. and the Elrod house in Palm Springs, but it is with this house that he pushed the design to its most glorious conclusion, blending as it does with the ocean view beyond. Photo: Thomas Loof with permission.
-David