047 \The world's first infinity pool/

MAKOTO TADOKORO
Feb 4
3 min read

Geoffrey Bawa is said to be the creator of the infinity pool, but what exactly is it and is it true?

Curious about this, I decided to visit The Triton Hotel (also known as Heritance Ahungalla Hotel, now Heritance Ahungalla Hotel, completed in 1979), the hotel that inspired its creation.

On December 25, 2023, I checked in early, expecting the hotel to be packed with tourists from Europe and the United States excited about their Christmas holidays.

I thought the check-in process went surprisingly smoothly, but the walk from the entrance lobby to my room was surprisingly long.

This is no surprise, as Bawa designed a horizontally dynamic hotel with two wings (accommodation buildings) with rooms facing the sea.

You can see it very well in this aerial photo, it's long from north to south, I think over 400 metres from end to end, and starting with a central building, the lobby, he divided the wings, slid them back and forth and rotated them 90 degrees, creating a series of open-sided courts facing the sea and a corresponding series of enclosed garden courts at different levels, activating access.

It is also interesting to note that the garden court facing the lobby still has the remains of an elevator that was used to transport supplies during construction.

The deluxe room I booked this time was at the very end of the north wing, but the view of the courtyard and scenery along the way made the distance even more enjoyable, as I was so captivated by it.

Upon entering the room, you are greeted by a brass bell lamp designed by Bawa, which serves as an accent and characterizes the room.

The Nanoda Bell Lamp is a lighting fixture that I love so much that I even used it in the design of Fusha by FUSHATHÉ, a Sri Lankan tea specialty store in Chofu.

However, the room layout and specifications do not seem particularly sophisticated, with the blackout screens by the windows being poorly designed and the desk being positioned in an awkward corner.

The bathroom also lacks the typical Bawa tiles and colors, giving the impression of being clean and uncluttered.

However, the terrace attached to the room faces the sea, offering a great view of the accommodation building, which was expanded in the 1990s, and the second pool.

Now, as for the world's first infinity pool, it was crowded with guests when I checked in, so I decided to go before breakfast so I could enjoy it the next morning.

next morning.

Once you pass through the lobby, there is an open space facing the sea.

That was Bawa's infinity pool.

Standing in the silence of a calm morning, the pool becomes a mirror, reflecting the sky and stretching out towards the sea.

It felt like an infinite world.

Bawa himself also stated:

"Everything was on the same level. The world was flat, you could see Africa!"

Bawa himself is gay, and has been involved in design work across religious boundaries. Perhaps this influence has led him to believe that he can think about everything in a flat way. Perhaps he wanted to express equality by using water, a substance that becomes perfectly horizontal due to gravity.

And symbolically placed on the edge of the pool is a chair made of rattan and teak called a love chair, which was a favorite chair of Bawa.

This chair allows couples to sit facing each other, allowing them to discuss love in an equal world. How romantic!

It was only when I visited that I realised that Bawa's first infinity pool was shaped by a truly magnificent worldview.

After that, I became curious and did some more research on infinity pools.

However, Noda discovered something very important at this point!

Apparently, the infinity pool was part of the Reyner Burchill House, designed by American architect John Lautner and completed around 1970.

The first infinity pool in modern architecture was in America.

John Lautner's Silvertop Residence, Infinity Pool, Photo from www.houzz.com

However, judging from the photographs, the pool at the Rayner Burchill House is located on a small hill, and does not appear to have been intended to connect with the sea and evoke the concept of infinity.

Considering this, it seems likely that Bawa was the first resort hotel in a seaside location to feature an infinity pool.

There is no doubt that swimming in this pool gives you a sense of infinity.