Fonarnie Bani, one of the oldest and historically significant bathhouses in St. Petersburg, Russia has opened its doors again after 15 years and a large-scale reconstruction.

To find a balance between historicism and modernity, MEGRE INTERIORS chose the path of purity of design solutions. After all, it is precisely purity and cleanliness that are the cornerstone of a bathhouse, and therefore the harmonious basis of the visual concept. It was important for the designers to draw the guests’ attention to the preserved elements of architecture, proportions, and volumes while creating a cozy, functional space.

Thus, the further the guests move from the entrance to the steam room, the “cleaner” the interior becomes. From a cozy Lobby with rich bardo walls and a carved chocolate wood fireplace to a snow-white Soap Room framed with a thin black line accentuating the historical architecture.

Through the main staircase, guests enter the main Lobby of the baths, in the center of which there is a circular reception designed based on carvings from that historical period. Thus, visitors enter the building directly to the second floor. When developing planning solutions, MEGRE INTERIORS retained communication through the central cross of corridors and stairs created by Suzor, as Yuna Megre, the Principal of MEGRE INTERIORS, felt it is vital to keep the flow of the building the way it was originally intended.

The second floor houses the main lobby, with its impressive fireplace and cozy sofas, a cafe-pub with cast iron tables restored from found engravings and marble walls, men’s and women’s changing rooms, a salon, and a barber shop.

In the Ladies Changing Chambers, MEGRE INTERIORS created a blush romantic interior filled with elements inspired by the surviving engravings of this space. A large-scale carved fireplace and a central column, as well as fancy cabinetry, create a coziness that is not inherent in changing rooms of a typical bathhouse. The entrance area and the salon are executed in a similar style.

In the Gentlemen’s Changing Chambers on the second floor, it was possible to restore a contemporary of the building – a tiled fireplace and a bronze mascaron with a triton’s head. These pieces hold great importance to the history of the city. The interior of the Gentlemen’s Rest Area was restored according to historical sketches with the utmost precision and awe, and the entrance area was conceived to resemble a similar style and mood.

The Soap Rooms, the main bathing areas in a public bathhouse, are united by a single aesthetic solution. The minimalist white tiles framed with black edging are designed to create a sense of visual purity and highlight the architecture of the space with its vaults and columns.

The MEGRE INTERIORS team has devoted 5 years to scrupulous work on the restoration of this project in the center of St. Petersburg and is grateful for the opportunity to create a project that will delight the people of St Petersburg and its visitors for decades to come.