Cities like New York are densely packed in an effort to maximize every available square foot—people literally stacked on top of one another. While a calendar crammed full of engagements—or simply fighting through the grocery store at 6 p.m.—can feel taxing, depleting one’s social battery, isolation and complete anonymity are also very real conditions in this context.
Photo: Sean Davidson
Through the monotony of constantly going to work and returning home, one can get lost in the thick of it. Third spaces are essential for breaking the cycle. They facilitate more meaningful, less superficial and fleeting interactions. For too long, this type of “escape” has simply been the bar around the corner; not merely a place to drink but also have impromptu—if more subconsciously planned than most will admit—exchanges with those outside of one’s professional and social circles. The health implications are problematic, to say the least.
Photo: Sean Davidson
Positioned as a new type of neighborhood gathering place—akin to the thriving supper clubs of a bygone era—Lore Bath House is not just another urban sauna but a facility made to more smoothly facilitate community. That isn’t to say that introverts or the newly defined, hybrid ambivert are barred from visiting. The option to converse with others is simply there. Lore’s expansive shared sauna spaces—both dry heat and infrared—and oversized cold plunge pool are far less modulated, confined, and formulaic than other comparable venues in New York.
Photo: Sean Davidson
It’s also nowhere near as cultish or “fully participatory” as some. The aim, of course, is to forge a base of regulars; those members that come to sweat as part of their weekly, even daily, routine. It’s a healthier alternative to the bar, coffee shop, and even, that loneliest of places, the gym.
Photo: Sean Davidson
For founders James O’Reilly—formerly of NeueHouse and Life Time—and Adam Elzer—the force behind Everyday Hospitality—such a proposition is not just outwardly but also inwardly facing; an act of kindness bestowed on oneself.
Photo: Sean Davidson
“We were drawn to this practice for the social elements, but stayed for the health and felt benefits,” O’Reilly says. “While it’s been around for millennia, science now confirms what tradition always knew: regular sauna and cold-water immersion sessions enrich health. The key isn’t longer sessions but greater frequency.
Photo: Sean Davidson
Behind a nondescript facade flanking Broadway as it climbs up through the bustling pocket neighborhood of NoHo, Lore unfolds as a 6,200-square-foot facility. Upon entering, members descend two separate staircases, one for women and the other for men, only to discover long, well-appointed changing and shower rooms. They re-emerge on either side and are fully immersed in the monumental sauna and cold plunge chamber. Along the way, they’re guided by a gradually evolving, sensorially cued palette of colors, materials, and textures. White warm travertine encircles the pool, the sauna is wrapped in dark, chocolate toned, alder wood. The bold yet gentled transitioned scheme evokes the sharp contrast of putting one’s body through thel extremes of “hot and cold.”
Photo: Aly Kula
Photo: Aly Kula
Photo: Aly Kula
Photo: Aly Kula
Photo: Aly Kula
To learn more about the new space, visit lorebathingclub.com.
Photography by Sean Davidson and Aly Kula as noted.
