Hot Rocks

An experiment in temporary DIY sauna construction with Kristiina Koskentola
Hot Pot + Hot Rocks

This is our first sauna in 2015. I collaborated with artists Kristiina Koskentola (FI) and Wang Wei (CN). During a harsh Beijing winter, as arctic winds howled through the city, an image of a sauna stove popped up on my online shopping feed. The algorithm somehow sensed the urgency for such a device. I called Kristiina, and Kristiina called her brother in Helsinki who is a member of the Finnish Sauna Society, and a sauna fanatic. We did our best to follow his instructions.

"Hot Rocks 1" was built in an industrial wasteland in the north of Beijing. We wired up an electric sauna stove–there was no clean wood for burning. We placed granite rocks on top and set up a vinyl marquee tent around the stove. The structure was wrapped in plastic sheeting and wound up with hemp ropes to keep the winds from blowing it all away. This experimental and artistic yurt produced mildly successful heat: 70°C. We suspect that our small stove was not strong enough to combat the bitter Gobi Desert wind.

Despite the disappointing sauna heat, the accompanying meal was a huge success. Kristiina enlightened us to traditional “sauna food,” a sausage on a grill or wrapped in foil and placed directly on the sauna stove. We localized this tradition into a Mongolian-style hotpot meal of thinly sliced lamb in sesame dipping sauce and invited friends and neighbors. The lamb hotpot became a ritual meal that carried into future iterations of the sauna. Kristiina also told us about ice cold beer while sauna bathing, and thankfully there was plenty of brew to go around.

Whilst the 70°C sauna temperature was mild by Finnish standards, Wei and I found temporary relief from the sub-zero temperatures. We were both confounded when Kristiina insisted that 70°C was not hot enough.

Our second tent sauna collaboration, “Hot Rocks 2,” was built in 2017 in a Beijing hutong art space, the Institute for Provocation (IFP). Improvements to the sauna included lowering the tent height and insulating with heavier blankets. This sauna reached a more respectable 80°C. The ramshackle tent posed as an artwork placed in the center of the gallery. Again, lamb hotpot was a major feature of this event. We enjoyed hotpot and beer while steaming and chatting with visitors.

The third version of the tent sauna, the “2021 Sauna Dome,” was housed in a tiny 60 sq. ft. room in a narrow hutong alley in Beijing. This time, our team was joined by Beijing-based architect Cao Yue (CN), and anthropologist Theo Stapleton (AU). This sauna was made of repurposed bamboo sticks, canvas material and the original sauna stove and rocks. After the dome structure was built, Norwegian Sauna Federation representative, Gustav Gillund (NO), made improvements to the insulation. This third sauna was the hottest yet, with temperatures of up to 110°C. The experience of 110°C heat is revelatory: the heat wipes away all brain chatter and penetrates straight into one’s soul. After ten minutes of pummeling steam, a mental and physical purging has occurred. Gustav taught us HOW to steam in a Finnish sauna, and it has been life-altering.

The “2021 Sauna Dome” was the FIRST sauna in China to be certified by the Norwegian Sauna Federation. In addition, employees of the Finnish Embassy came to perform a ritual “Sauna Baptism.”