temporal layering enlivens blue rock swim club in canada
Way of Normal transforms a long-dormant brewing space beneath a popular local restaurant in Canada into the Blue Rock Swim Club, a bar whose conceptual history is set within the scene of a forgotten underground bathhouse, long abandoned and slowly reclaimed. More than a spatial renovation, the challenge of creation lay in crafting a compelling historical narrative within a context — and a city — that prioritizes new-build construction over historical preservation.
To conjure a sense of temporal layering, the studio selected materials for their tactile honesty and implied permanence. Board-formed concrete anchors the space with brutalist restraint, while wire-brushed, charred wood introduces the rich patina of age. Along one wall, a custom mural in soft, weathered tones has been sanded back — its faded surface suggestive of both art and artifact.
all images courtesy of Way of Normal
way of normal excavates imagined pasts for the design concept
The team at Way of Normal approached the brief by mapping the spatial logic of traditional bathhouses. With no existing entrance from the street, access into the Blue Rock Swim Club was carved out through a neighboring service corridor. Recast as an immersive passage, this liminal space is clad in waxed stainless steel and monochrome finishes, guiding visitors downward in a quiet, reflective descent — like slipping beneath the surface of still water.
Entry begins in a moody ‘locker room’, now functioning as a subdued foyer. From there, guests are led through the ‘remnants of changerooms’ reinterpreted as individual washroom stalls, before arriving at the heart of the space —the ‘basins’. This sculpted dining area is embedded within the building’s original foundations, its sunken floor and tiered platforms evoking the eroded geometry of communal pools and long-lost rituals.
view from the sunken seating space into the bar
transforming a long-dormant, underground brewing space
Hints of LA and Brazilian modernism lend the project its warmth. Hand-cut zellige tiles and sculpted terrazzo surfaces offer an organic counterbalance to the concrete shell. Bespoke lighting, designed and fabricated in-house, traces vertical elements in charred wood and reappears mirrored above suggesting a subtle choreography of light and reflection. Furnishings are strategic yet distinct, and custom leather banquettes echo through the space, mingling with vintage pieces and one-off designs. The barstools, engineered in-house, nest within the footrail, forming a clean, continuous edge.
This attention to detail, paired with art direction and procurement handled by the studio itself, gives the space its unmistakable sense of narrative cohesion. The result is a richly layered venue that feels both cinematic and rooted in its fictional past, yet resolutely present in the city’s evolving cultural and culinary landscape.
raised tier seating space
undulating bar-form, paired with bespoke seating
booth seating space with bespoke lighting
the custom seating was created with an integrated rail system that follows the curvature of the bar
the group seating space, easily privatized by the expansion of integrated drapery
bar seating shown against marble bar top and zellige tile bar-front
hand-burnt and wire-brushed wood planks, paired with the eclectic furniture and decor
Way of Normal completes Blue Rock Swim Club
project info:
name: Blue Rock Swim Club
interior designer: Way of Normal | @wayofnormal
location: Canada
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