A rich mix of pool users can make simultaneous use of the dedicated pools of this swimming centre deep inside Amsterdam in the IJ inlet

Everyone is welcome in public swimming centres: lane swimmers, children taking swimming lessons, leisure swimmers as well as the over-60s, fitness swimmers, even nude swimmers. But it is no easy matter bringing together this array of pool users, as they fail to overlap. Not just that, today's swimming baths are more functional blueprints than public icons, such as bath-houses were to the Romans.

The public swimming centre I have designed gives bathing back its character and makes space for all the different types of swimmers simultaneously.

It is sited in the middle of Amsterdam in the IJ inlet at Sixhaven, a harbour basin at present privately owned. By locating the baths here, this place with its views, inhabitants and visitors is given back to the city. The centre faces out to all sides as an isolated cube in the waters of the IJ, its square form slipping into the fabric of city blocks without imposing on it.

Since the centre stands in the water, visitors have to cross a bridge from the mainland to access it. This recalls the swimming areas in the waters of major cities roundabout 1900 that were entered from a scaffold; Amsterdam had its own in the IJ and in the river Amstel.

This position in the water means that the swimmer is gradually drawn into another world, leaving the city behind yet still swimming in its midst.

Different categories of swimmers can use these baths simultaneously, obviating the need for a timetable. It is important to give the different target groups the chance to find a place of their own that they can withdraw to. People need space, particularly when scantily clad. Through effective routeing and individual changing rooms the centre's users are transformed from visitors to swimmers en route for their pool. This creates a natural interpersonal distance congenial to those concerned while still sharing a pool with others. The various pools in this centre are related, visually or physically one moment and merely giving a sense of the presence of the other pools the next. This gives visitors the opportunity to meet in a relaxed atmosphere.

Water is the key ingredient of a swimming pool; it gives a sense of freedom, it is always level and, when flowing, it can wear down the hardest stone. People experience their bodies differently in a swimming pool; these seem almost weightless due to the lack of clothing, and vulnerable. The intention behind the design is that swimmers should feel relaxed through the space they perceive and experience. This space has to accommodate itself to the unclothed body, and be a product of the water.

As a building, the swimming centre is a monolithic block with an open swimming area with public baths hewn from it. Its intimate spaces - changing rooms, private pool and the like - are located inside the mass. The open pool area is defined by the smooth curve of the ceiling, the columns and the water which flows from pool to pool. This set-up generates places with differing degrees of intimacy where visitors can bathe and take a break, while being in constant contact with the city.

Place of education: AvB Amsterdam Specialization: architecture | Tutors: Moriko Kira, Jan Richard Kikkert, Gilian Schrofer