Brutalism buffs should make sure they visit The Cantabrian Maritime Museum for its recently revamped concrete-garnished Mediterranean restaurant overlooking Santander Bay. The design, led by Zooco, an award-winning Spanish architecture and design studio, aims to evoke the sensation of being aboard a ship, surrounded by nothing but water.
Discover seaside brutalism at The Cantabrian Maritime Museum
Originally envisioned by Spanish architects Vicente Roig Forner and Ángel Hernández Morales as part of a complex that accompanied the Oceanographic Center in the 1970s, the museum’s building underwent renovations in 2003. The west facade was extended, and a pyramidal aluminium structure was added to the terrace roof.
Over two decades later, the structure has undergone another update, with the second floor transformed into a dramatic hospitality area that conjures a nautical atmosphere through oak wood and stainless steel fixtures – materials traditionally used in ship construction. Miguel Crespo Picot, Javier Guzmán Benito and Sixto Martín Martínez, founders of Zooco explain, ‘The furniture boasts subtle curves reminiscent of nautical aerodynamics, while the design of the lamps draws inspiration from ship masts and sails.’
Yet what truly sets the building apart is how the firm treated the original structure as a sculptural element, with the restaurant ‘becoming a vestige of the past’. The grey-toned concrete paraboloids of the original structure were left untouched, simply completed with four triangles of wooden slats, mirroring the construction of boat hulls. The resulting space, therefore, fosters both harmony and tension with the sea, sky, and mountains in the background.
At the same time, glass windows offer unobstructed views, concealed by low-slung fabric curtains, if desired. Just a few steps away, the generous terrace awaits, extending towards the water and providing green-accented outdoor seating, ideal for getting comfortable and losing track of time. The restaurant at The Cantabrian Maritime Museum is expected to open for the summer season.
The restaurant at The Cantabrian Maritime Museum is located at Av. de Severiano Ballesteros, Santander, zooco.es
A version of this article appears in the June 2024 Travel Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.
-
What is the role of fragrance in contemporary culture, asks a new exhibition at 10 Corso ComoMilan concept store 10 Corso Como has partnered with London creative agency System Preferences to launch Olfactory Projections 01
-
Jack White's Third Man Records opens a Paris pop-upJack White's immaculately-branded record store will set up shop in the 9th arrondissement this weekend
-
Designer Marta de la Rica’s elegant Madrid studio is full of perfectly-pitched contradictionsThe studio, or ‘the laboratory’ as de la Rica and her team call it, plays with colour, texture and scale in eminently rewarding ways
-
‘I explored Benidorm with an open mind’: the famous Spanish seaside town is captured in a new photo bookFrom neon lights to pink sunburns, photographer Rob Ball turns his lens on Benidorm to see what remains of a ‘pan-European holiday utopia’
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Brach Madrid: a hotel of love and passionBrach Madrid, part of Evok Collection, is a charming city-centre bolthole designed by Philippe Starck
-
2025 getaways: where Wallpaper* editors will be travelling to this yearFrom the Japanese art islands of Naoshima and Teshima to the Malaysian tropical paradise of Langkawi, here’s where Wallpaper* editors plan to travel to in 2025
-
The most whimsical hotel Christmas trees around the worldWe round up the best hotel Christmas tree collaborations of the year, from an abstract take in Madrid to a heritage-rooted installation in Amsterdam
-
The world’s most enticing new hotel openingsExplore the best new hotels in the world, from a bijou addition to the London hotel scene to a lush safari adventure in South Africa
-
Mallorca’s ‘chocolate hotel’ celebrates six decades of Mediterranean panacheSixty years after it opened, Hotel de Mar remains a celebrated example of Mediterranean vernacular architecture
-
Easy and breezy: Four Seasons Resort Mallorca at Formentor is now openWe found Balearic bliss at Four Seasons Resort Mallorca at Formentor, the place to live the Mediterranean dream and connect with nature
-
Inside Hotel Ur Bare: a boutique surf retreat beside the Cantabrian seaHotel Ur Bare lies in Zarautz, a picturesque coastal town in Spain's Basque Country, and presents 13 modern rooms accented with local flair
