HOTEL W BARCELONA

A monumental hotel shaped like a sail.

Barcelona (Spain)
28 July 2010

Company: Estudio Bofill

Barcelona now has a hotel with direct access to the sea in the form of the spectacular W Barcelona, a building dramatically shaped like a sail with fantastic views of the Mediterranean and the city’s skyline. The project was undertaken by prestigious architects Estudio Bofill.

The hotel boasts over 2,500 sq m of public spaces, 473 rooms, 70 of which are suites, a spa, gym and the restaurant Bravo, which is overseen by the acclaimed chef Carlos Abellán, as well as various bars, swimming pools and terraces. And many very well-known examples of design made by world-renowned Spanish companies grace the interiors.

The entire hotels’ interior design evokes the sea. Indeed it brings to mind a seabed by using colours reminiscent of coral and sand. Low-level furniture and other fittings were also chosen so that these don’t block the views of the Med and the city. As its architect Ricardo Bofill puts it, ‘We wanted to create a space which projects on to the sea, like a huge balcony or a theatre with a gigantic stage set depicting water.’

Outside, the building’s outline is highlighted by a line of white LEDs on its facade. The outdoor chillout areas are furnished with chairs, tables, sun loungers and elegant, pristine white summerhouses made by specialist outdoor garden furniture Gandia Blasco, while all the sofas come courtesy of the Barcelona-based firm Bivag.

Dotted about in the lounge are various huge sofas designed for the project by the company Perobell, while the rugs were supplied by the firm J&BCN Jordi Mas. In the bedrooms are lighting company Metalarte’s Zoom lights, Pepe Peñalver’s textiles, Roca’s bathroom fittings and sofas by Perobell. All the suites’ outdoor furniture was supplied y Gandía Blasco.

On this impressive hotel’s first floor is the Bravo restaurant, designed by the studio Isabel López Vilalta. Here wood used for the floors, walls and ceilings, in conjunction with lighting which varies from space to space, endows the space with an extraordinarily inviting warmth. The scheme has earned itself the honour of being a finalist at the UK’s Restaurant & Bar Design Awards which were judged last July in London.

Bravo is almost entirely furnished with Spanish design, notably Viccarbe’s Last Minute stools designed by Patricia Urquiola, chairs with backrests made of rattan from Panama created by designers Lievore, Altherr and Molina for the company Bonestil, Gandía Blasco’s arresting Flower rugs and Miguel Milá’s lantern-like Cesta lamps for Santa & Cole. Finally, Andreu World’s Zisa chairs grace different parts of the dining areas.