Aufguss — show-stopping sauna ritual or camp melodrama?
We dive into the world of Show Aufguss and time travel with our favorite bathhouse films, from Ancient Rome to Fellini's Italy via Ottoman Istanbul.
How much do you know about Aufguss, the European sauna ritual that’s gathering steam in the US?
Is that the one where uber-fit dudes pirouette around in an overheated cabin waving white towels like wind turbines?
Well, sort of. ‘Aufguss’ means infusion in German referring to the ice balls infused with aromatherapy oils that sizzle on the hot rocks. It originated as a simple ritual where the sauna meister uses a towel to direct scented steam towards bathers. But it has evolved into a multi-sensory theatrical experience staged in event saunas that can seat 300 naked people. At the Aufguss World Championships (yes, there are championships) aufguss masters compete in Classic, Modern and Show categories.
What’s the fuss about ‘Show’ aufguss?
Show aufguss is often described as performance art in a sauna. Aufguss masters (women as well as men) perform choreographed shows involving costumes, sound, scent, lighting effects and video, as well as much acrobatic towel twirling. The story lines can be humorous or dark and invariably dramatic - mini dramas designed to arouse emotion and involve all five senses.
Where can I see it?
Make a pilgrimage to sauna theatres in venues like the Bussloo, Netherlands; Satama Saunapark, Germany, or Aquardens, Italy where a 340-seat sauna opens in March. Therme Bucharest hosts an annual Sauna Fest (see video above) where many of the world champions perform. The first US event sauna opened in Las Vegas in 2022. Expect aufguss in a sauna near you, soon.
Meet some of our favorite Aufguss Masters
Michael Niedermair
Italy
Best known shows: Behind the Door, Make it Happen, 7even
Signature style: Sturm und drang
Michael Niedermair won this year’s World Championship in the singles category with his show Behind the Door, an emotional depiction of a tortured artist who is afraid of the world. He uses rhododendron, styrax, frankincense and birch oils to create an agonized aromatic journey.
@aufgussart
Sigrid van Rijswijk and Whitney Cox
The Netherlands
Best known shows: Hide and Seek, White Raven, Reflections
Signature style: Lost innocence
Sigrid van Rijswijk and Whitney Cox won this year’s World Championship in the team category with their performance, Hide and Seek. Two girls move with their mother to a haunted house and become possessed… A theatrical voyage into the dark side with scents of rose and hibiscus, sage, nutmeg, pine and juniper.
@aufgusscreations
Matej Brtko and Marek Homza
Slovakia
Best known shows: Rasta Rockett, The Last Drop, When AI gets human feelings
Signature style: DIY humour
Matej Brtko and Marek Homza performed at this year’s Sauna Fest with their show Rasta Rockett in an aufguss interpretation of the film Cool Runnings about the unlikely Jamaican bobsleigh team that competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics. With a bobsleigh strapped to their waists and towels embroidered in Jamaican colors, the pair twirl in sync channelling the film’s unbreakable team spirit.
@saunalife.sk
Great baths on film
From Roman time travel to the hamams of Istanbul, we recommend three films for bathing-inspired holiday viewing.
8 1/2 (Otto e mezzo), 1963
Fellini’s autobiographical masterpiece 8 1/2 (Otto e mezzo) follows the trials of a film director called Guido (devilishly handsome Marcello Mastroianni) suffering from director’s block. In search of creative renewal, he retires to ‘take the waters’ in a setting inspired by the languid charm of the Tuscan spa town Chianciamo where Fellini was a regular. The film is a mesmerizing glimpse into the lost world of spas in the era of La Dolce Vita. Pretty much plotless, water is the portal to reverie. When Guido drinks the spring waters or soaks in a mineral bath he wafts into delirious dream sequences populated by cardinals, ex lovers and a harem scene where all the women in his life are gathered together in judgement. Just float with it.
♨️ Read the full article for the rest of our picks
Join a Polar Bear Plunge to kick-start 2025!
New Year’s swims take place around the world from Scotland’s traditional Loony Dook to Scheveningen, Netherland’s massive beach swim. Here are a few North American events where you can jump in:
Coney Island Polar Bear Club, Coney Island, New York
Recordbreaker Cold Plunge, Toronto
L Street Brownies, Boston
10th Annual Polar Bear Plunge and Naked Bike Ride, Ocean Beach, San Francisco
And, this one is a few weeks into the new year on January 25: Chicago Polar Bear Plunge
In the news
“There’s More to a Bathing Suit Than Meets the Eye”. Vogue republishes an iconic shoot on bathing suits by stylist Polly Mellen who died last week, and which caused something of a scandal when first published in May 1975.
Vogue, December 13, 2024
“It is never a good idea to pause between a 194-degree sauna and the mind-bending frigidity of Lake Superior in February.” Stephanie Pearson goes on a 750 mile sauna-crawl round Lake Superior in search of the perfect steam.
New York Times, December 18, 2024
“An uber-fit duo, who identified themselves as Gerda and Florian, launched into a dazzling display of sauna choreography”. The WSJ explores German aufguss style.
Wall Street Journal, December 12, 2024
One last thing
We’re obsessed with this blue resin hippo by François-Xavier Lalanne which has a sink and mirror in its mouth and a bath in its belly, originally commissioned in 1968 by Teeny and Marcel Duchamp.
We’d love to hear from you - please send a DM, or email hello@cultureofbathing.com
Amazed how aufguss spreads, yet I'm good with excellent heat and löyly. I like theater and circus but why mix sauna to them?