Menorca never fully surrendered to mass-tourism logic. Development happened, of course, but the island’s reputation has long rested on economic life kept in conversation with landscape, conservation and the scale of its towns. In 1993, UNESCO recognised Menorca as a Biosphere Reserve, citing the island’s unusually compatible relationship between economic activity, resource use, heritage conservation and landscape quality.

Hotel Riviera has some of that same self-possession. Unlike the prescriptive Balearic hotel formula, it does not arrive dressed as a tasteful white box. It is orange, curved, stripe-happy, a little mischievous – the wild child of Menorcan hotels, one could argue. The 14-room boutique stay takes over the former Hotel Madrid, a traditional local hotel embedded in Ciutadella’s urban fabric, and gives it a pool-first new life. The building’s orange bands wrap its façade; inside, terrazzo, curves, mustard tones and retro stripes set up a spritz-coloured world before you have even put down your bags.

Wallpaper* checks in at Riviera Hotel Menorca

What’s on your doorstep?

Riviera sits next to the breezy Passeig Marítim, which opens onto a run of dreamlike turquoise coves, including Cala Degollador and Cala Gran. The hotel sends guests out properly branded for the task: orange towels, orange umbrellas (no confusion about where you came from). There are sea-facing restaurants nearby, but the better play is the 10-minute walk into the historic centre. Ciutadella’s old lanes come alive after dark: tavernas, small bars, shaded corners, and Bar Imperi for llonguet – the local bread – filled with sobrasada and honey, or whatever else the evening requires.

Who is behind the design?

The interiors are by Ilmiodesign, with Oscar Paradís Medina overseeing construction. The founders of the Madrid-based studio, Andrea Spada and Michele Corbani, looked away from the expected Menorcan palette and towards the Italian Riviera Romagnola of the 1970s, ‘an iconic era defined by vibrant coasts, striking beach umbrellas, and an unmistakable retro charm’. That reference gives Riviera its cadence: beach-town optimism, saturated colour, proper stripes and plenty of holiday glamour.

It is a deliberate swerve from the usual Balearic script. ‘We intentionally wanted to break away from the traditional Balearic minimalism,’ the designers say, citing the island’s familiar all-white look as exactly what they wanted to avoid. Instead, Riviera gives you warm terracotta, mustard yellow, mineral textures, traditional terrazzo, retro striped upholstery and rounded ceiling coves. Terrazzo is the anchor: a Mediterranean constant that lets the hotel flirt with Italy without losing its Menorcan ground.

On the ground floor, the façade has been opened so the reception-bar looks straight towards the pool, while orange bands wrap the building like a ribbon and glow at night. Inside, the courtyard behaves like a small urban lido: balconies running motel-style along the guestrooms, sunbeds below, orange-and-white tiling, striped umbrellas. Arrival, the designers say, was planned as a move ‘from the street to the oasis’.

The room to book

All 14 rooms have private outdoor spaces and are arranged across four categories: Double Piccola, Double Deluxe, Junior Suite and Suite Riviera. Some face the sea, others the pool, while larger terraces give the best rooms a little open-air theatre. ‘Every room has a unique story to tell,’ say Spada and Corbani – helped by a redrawn layout that gives each one either a view, a terrace or some more intimate relationship with the building.

The rooms keep the retro Mediterranean pace flowing: curved forms, warm tones, striped details and some very chic Mary Quant-ish flower lamps. Most of the furniture and room lamps were custom-made and adapted to each room type, while Marshall speakers, Dyson hairdryers and Malin+Goetz toiletries keep the stay practical as well as photogenic.

Staying for drinks and dinner?

After a Mediterranean-inspired breakfast, with buffet and à la carte options, the menu at the poolside restaurant shifts at lunchtime into holiday mode: açai and granola bowls, fruit with agave and lime, New York pancakes with peanut butter and brûléed banana, and a saltier run of eggs, shakshuka, ricotta toast and Riviera fries with parmesan fondue. The Benedict Riviera – brioche, poached eggs, smashed avocado and parmesan fondue – is a must-have. The pool bar serves cocktails and soft drinks until late afternoon, while day passes allow non-guests to use the pool and facilities, giving the courtyard a little local traffic.

Where to switch off

Wellness lives on the rooftop, which feels right for a hotel built around sunburst energy. The day starts with energising Pilates at 8 am; later, massages take place above the sea, wrapped in draped fabric, soft music and Mediterranean air. The treatment list keeps things simple: a Riviera massage with essential oils and energy work, a medium-pressure relaxing massage, a Swedish massage, foot reflexology and a facial massage. Back on the ground floor, the saltwater pool remains, naturally, the place to be from morning to evening.

The verdict

Riviera Hotel Menorca brings a very contagious hit of 1970s Italian seaside spirit to Ciutadella: compact, sociable, colourful and genuinely fun. It works because the attitude is matched by good service. Staff are warm, attentive and relaxed. Their T-shirts read ‘a little party never hurt nobody’, which says plenty about the hotel’s appeal. Riviera is not trying to be Menorca’s grandest stay, but the one you remember long after that last summer spritz.

Riviera Hotel Menorca is located at Carrer de Madrid, 60, 07760 Ciutadella, Illes Balears, Spain

Located in a spectacular spot on Spain’s Costa Brava, the Staempfli House is new to the market via Sotheby’s International Realty in Spain. Built on the seafront in the town of Cadaqués in the heart of the Cap de Creus Natural Park, the terraced house has balconies that overlook the town’s main beach.

The Staempfli House was built in 1958 for the Swiss-born art dealer George William Staempfli (1910-1999). Staempfli moved to the US in 1935, took up a role at the venerable New York dealership of M. Knoedler & Company and served as curator of paintings at Houston’s Museum of Fine Arts from 1954 to 1956. In 1959, he set up his own dealership, the Staempfli Gallery on 77th St, with his second wife, Emily McFadden Staempfli.

This Catalonian house served both as a bolthole and a place to entertain the European artists he represented. The town itself was a favourite spot of Salvador Dalí (the Casa-Museu Salvador Dalí is a short walk away on the adjoining bay) and other key artists including Picasso, Miró, Duchamp and Richard Hamilton were also visitors.

The house was extensively rebuilt in the late 50s by the British architect Peter Harnden and Italian architect Lanfranco Bombelli, partners in the exhibition design specialists PGHA Peter Graham Harnden Associates. Harnden and Bombelli were also regular visitors to Cadaqués and built extensively for themselves and other artists in the region.

The Staempfli House fulfilled a dual role as residence and museum, with house guests including Dalí and Duchamp, along with Isamu Noguchi, Harry Bertoia, and Xavier Corberó, renowned for his impressive house in Barcelona. The house retains these qualities in the present day, blending traditional tiles and timber with (then) state-of-the art kitchen and bathroom fittings, giving off an eclectic mid-century vibe.

Elements like the floating fireplace with integrated seating, the tiled ‘water mirror’ sculpture terrace, timber-clad ceilings, niches, arches and integrated furniture all come together to create a house that demands to be a backdrop for art and design.

Staempfli retained his New York gallery until 1988, representing Dalí alongside the Belgian realist Paul Delvaux and the neo-figurative artist Elmer Bischoff, amongst others. In retirement, Staempfli moved to Maryland, where he died in 1999.

The house in Cadaqués passed into similarly enlightened ownership, retaining its strong creative vibe. The town itself continues to be an artistic haunt into the present day, with museums and galleries adjoining the more traditional beachside restaurants and bars of the region.

Staempfli House, Cadaqués, Spain, €9,500,000, Spain-SothebysRealty.com, @Spain.SothebysRealty

Designers Clémence Pirajean and James Lees had been visiting Formentera for 20 years before deciding to put down roots. Accessible only by boat from neighbouring Ibiza, the smallest and most southerly of Spain’s Balearic Islands is loved for its crystal-clear waters and peaceful, unhurried pace of life. Property on the tiny island is scarce, so when the opportunity arose two years ago to buy a family home there, the couple jumped at it.

Set between a protected natural park and a sleepy residential area, the house’s interlocking volumes rise from the surrounding greenery. The architecture offers a modernist interpretation of the traditional Spanish finca, with terracotta roof tiles, exposed timber beams and shaded pergolas.

Originally built in the 1960s, the house had served first as a family holiday home and later as a low-cost rental. Although in need of some care, its bones were good: the rooms were generously proportioned, the structure was sound and there was remarkably little damage from the island’s notoriously aggressive salt air and strong winds.

‘The first thing we did when we got the keys was sit in the house, in each empty room,’ recalls Pirajean. ‘There was almost nothing there, just a couple of chairs, but we wanted to experience the volumes and spaces before deciding anything; to imagine ourselves within them. In a way, it’s easier when it’s your own house, because you already know how you live, who might come to stay and how the family moves through a space day to day. That instinct – understanding a space through inhabiting it before imposing anything upon it – is actually at the heart of how we approach every project.'

Since founding Pirajean Lees in 2017, the couple have become known for creating atmospheric hospitality interiors, including a recent redesign of one of Hong Kong's most iconic nightclubs and a Japanese restaurant at the top of the revamped Old War Office building on Whitehall. Describing themselves as ‘narrative designers’, they begin each project with extensive research, constructing a story that grows from the history, character and context of a place.

‘That narrative is what anchors the design,’ explains Lees. ‘It means we’re not following trends; we’re creating something specific enough to a place and a story that it can withstand the test of time. And, in a strange way, once the narrative is in place, we’re not really the designers any more.’

A Formentera retreat shaped by its environment

In Formentera, that investigation led them to the sabina tree, a sculptural, salt-resistant species native to the Balearics, whose wind-twisted trunks seemed to embody the spirit of the house: shaped by its environment, resistant to outside forces and deeply rooted in place. This idea of something natural and evolving in response to its surroundings informed every decision, from the reclaimed local dry stone and sabina timber used in the architecture to the oak joinery and bespoke furniture made by artisans with whom the studio has worked for many years.

The project became an exercise in repairing what had been neglected rather than pursuing a wholesale transformation – an approach also shaped by the island’s strict planning laws, which the couple embraced as a creative prompt rather than a limitation.

The most significant intervention was the reorganisation of the ground floor. Previously divided into three disconnected rooms, the kitchen, living room and dining room were opened up to create a sequence of interconnected spaces and a continuous circuit through the ground floor.

The vaulted kitchen ceiling was retained, the fireplaces reopened and restored, and the original dark floor tiles replaced with hand-polished concrete punctuated by terracotta inserts. Corridors were reduced to make room for an en suite bathroom for every bedroom, while narrow doorways were softened into arches that now recur throughout the house.

The palette is deliberately quiet, allowing the vivid blue sky and surrounding greenery to take precedence. Natural materials and local craftsmanship form the backdrop, with colour introduced sparingly through furniture, textiles and objects.

In the long, narrow living room, a curved sofa designed by the studio specifically for the space creates a focal point that feels intimate with two people yet generous enough for a crowd. Upholstered in a golden yellow hue, it provides one of the house’s strongest notes of colour and is Pirajean's favourite spot. An adze-carved oak sideboard in the dining room offers a more tactile counterpoint; both designs have since joined the studio’s Editions collection of artisan-made furniture.

A summer house designed for togetherness

Pirajean and Lees’ experience of hospitality design is equally evident in the way the house accommodates groups. Its spaces had to work for a large, multigenerational family, whether occupied by two people or 12. The kitchen forms its social heart, flowing into the living and dining rooms, while outside, a dining terrace, pool lounge and shaded patio provide different settings in which to gather. These communal areas are balanced by quieter corners, inside and out, where family members can retreat.

Designer and client

Yet behind the apparent ease of the finished house, the designers confess that applying their established process to their own home was more complicated than anticipated. ‘Being objective about something this personal is much harder than it sounds,’ admits Pirajean. ‘When it’s a client, we start by analysing the brief, researching the location and building the narrative from the outside in. We tried to hold ourselves to the same process here, even though it was our own home. But that distance is much harder to find when it’s personal: you’re playing both sides, being the client and the designer at once, and that makes it far harder to be decisive.’

Some decisions nevertheless came instinctively. Opening up the principal living spaces suited the way the family already lived, while the couple never considered correcting the house’s wonky walls, irregular windows and other idiosyncrasies. More unexpectedly, they agonised over the driveway, carefully choreographing when the house would appear and disappear from view on the approach. Even identifying the entrance proved difficult. ‘Because every single room in the house opens onto the garden, deciding which one should actually be the front door wasn’t at all obvious,’ explains Lees. ‘In the end, we chose not to have a front door.’

Instead, decks and pathways create an informal circulation route around the house, allowing its occupants to move barefoot between indoors and out. The absence of a formal entrance reinforces the sense that the house belongs as much to the landscape as it does to its architecture. ‘It sounds like a small thing, but it really emphasises that connection between indoors and outdoors, and keeps you grounded in the landscape rather than separate from it,’ says Pirajean.

Although designed around the freedoms of summer, the house is not solely a fair-weather retreat. The couple particularly enjoy visiting during the island’s quieter autumn and winter months, and ensuring that the indoor and outdoor living spaces remained inviting as the days grew cooler and shorter was central to their approach.

From the outset, the couple thought of the house as a workshop: not a static composition – somewhere that could evolve with their family. 'We didn't need to get every decision right immediately, because we'd built in the flexibility to adapt,' explains Pirajean. Designing it has also renewed their understanding of what they ask of their clients. ‘It’s a first-hand reminder of what it means to hand over control of a deeply personal project and trust the process,’ adds Lees. ‘A home also needs flexibility. It can keep evolving to reflect the people who live there and the layers they bring with them.’

pirajeanlees.com

London-based interdisciplinary designer and 'art engineer' Moritz Waldemeyer has unveiled a site-specific lighting installation to accompany Andrea Mastrovito's monumental Agnus Dei installation at Sagrada Família in Barcelona. Commissioned by the Junta Constructora de la Sagrada Família, Mastrovito's hand-crafted glass sculpture of a lamb is intended to bring Antoni Gaudí's vision to completion.

Throughout his career, Waldemeyer has seamlessly inhabited a space where art, engineering, technology and light intersect. His work ranges from luminous headpieces for singer Jamiroquai to responsive lighting designs that mimic the warmth of candlelight, and immersive sculptural installations that elevate the experience of light to new technological mediums. Despite working with and developing cutting-edge technology through his practice, Waldemeyer's pieces always feel like they exist at a human level, considering light not as a static tool but as something alive.

Illuminating the Sagrada Família

Mastrovito's sculpture sits within the cross crowning the Tower of Jesus Christ, 172m high, and features a symbolic glass lamb, originally envisioned by Gaudí as part of his plans for the basilica, whose construction finished this year after starting in 1882.

Waldemeyer was tasked with illuminating the light sculpture without showing obvious light sources, a blend of design, engineering and craftsmanship that encapsulates the studio's expertise. Rising to the challenge, the designer devised a concealed ultraviolet lighting technology with high-energy focused light sources that in the darkness activate the artwork's phosphorescent pigments after dark, making it glow.

This also allows the inscription verses from John 1,29, inscribed within the gilded rays surrounding the sculpture, to emerge, adding a new layer of meaning to the work. Rendered in Latin, the lettering spells out the verse 'The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world"'.

More than a mere technical feat, the lighting project was achieved using newly developed technology inspired by automotive lighting and applied to evoke an emotional visual effect. The result, the studio explains, 'feels like pure magic: an artwork that emits a mysterious glow without any visible light source, wiring or technology. The engineering disappears entirely, leaving visitors to encounter only the Lamb and its seemingly immaterial light.'

'Projects such as the Sagrada Família demand a different way of thinking about technology,' said Waldemeyer and Nazanin Farhabod, co-founders of Studio Waldemeyer. 'Our role was not to create a lighting effect, but to make the technology disappear completely, allowing visitors to experience only the artwork itself. The most successful solution is often the one that cannot be seen.'

Also read: Lego Architecture reaches its apotheosis in this massive model of the Sagrada Família

On 12 August 2026, Mallorca will fall into the path of a total solar eclipse: the rare moment when the moon passes directly between Earth and the sun, briefly covering the solar disc and turning day towards dusk. The event will pass across parts of the Arctic, Greenland, Iceland, the Atlantic, northern Spain and the Balearic Islands, making Mallorca one of Europe’s most desirable places to watch it unfold. This round-up looks at the Mallorcan stays making the most of the eclipse – some have built full celestial programmes, with astronomers, telescopes, dinners and sea departures.

Mallorca’s total solar eclipse is best seen from these hotels

Hotel Corazón

Hotel Corazón sits off the mountain road between Sóller and Deià, in an 18th-century finca wrapped in palms, cypress and Tramuntana rock. The 17-room hotel is run by photographer Kate Bellm and Edgar Lopez, whose eye for image, garden and mood shapes everything from the room newspapers to the cactus garden. Moredesign restored the finca with local artisans, keeping the cobbled courtyard, terracotta tones and old chapel, now a spa. Rooms feature limewash, linen, stone, pink, sage and rough ceramics; the pool sits above the sea among pampas grass, rosemary and 1970s loungers. Farmer-in-residence Emma Philip sends kitchen-garden produce to chef Eliza Parchanska, who offers plant-led plates at the terrace restaurant, which Tatjana von Stein recently redesigned with carved marble tables, mustard banquettes, gingham napkins and sailor-striped cushions. For the eclipse, Corazón is keeping it stylishly low-key: the boutique is already selling bohemian Corazón Eclipse ’26 T-shirts, with the real viewing party happening on the terrace, a drink in hand, as the Tramuntana turns blue.

Hotel Corazón is located at Carretera de Deià, km. 56, 7, 07100 Sóller, Balearic Islands, Spain

Four Seasons Resort Mallorca at Formentor

Few Mallorcan hotels come with a backstory as rich as Four Seasons Resort Mallorca at Formentor. The original Hotel Formentor opened in 1929, founded by Argentinian poet and promoter Dan Diehl, and became the island’s grand northern hideaway long before the word resort lost its romance. In 2024, Four Seasons took over the 40-hectare site at the tip of the island, with Estudio Lamela remodelling the historic building and Gilles & Boissier handling the interiors. The white façade remains largely intact, while all 110 rooms and suites face the sea, with terraces looking over Formentor Bay. Inside, the palette follows the coast: pale natural tones and deep green accents feature across tadelakt walls, fabric panelling, and timber. The eclipse programme here includes a viewing from the spectacular Na Blanca summit, an elegant BBQ evening in the resort’s private vineyards beneath the Perseid meteor shower, and a yacht journey along the Formentor coastline for a front-row view of the celestial event. The property itself already has the right ingredients too: pine-shaded terraces and outdoor tables at Mel, Shima and Llum I Sal.

Four Seasons Resort Mallorca at Formentor is located at Carrer de Formentor, s/n, 07470 Mallorca, Illes Balears, Spain

Jumeirah Mallorca

Jumeirah Mallorca is perched above Port de Sóller on Mallorca’s north-west coast, with the Serra de Tramuntana behind it and the Mediterranean below. Designed by Arditecnica, with interiors by Peter Silling & Associates, the 121-room hotel is worked into the slope with planted roofs, private terraces and a round stone entrance hall that refers to the island’s talaias, the defence towers once built along the coast. Rooms split their gaze between mountain and sea, while the best views are saved for the public spaces: the 240 sq m Tramuntana Terrace, the eighth-floor infinity pool 110m above the water, five restaurants including Cap Roig and Sunset Lounge, and the Talise Spa, where a hydropool looks back to the mountains. Jumeirah is treating the eclipse as a four-day takeover. From 10 to 14 August, there will be astronomy masterclasses with Mallorca’s Astronomy Institute, solar telescopes, sunrise rituals, yacht trips, olive-grove dining and wellness sessions. On the night itself, guests can gather 100m above the sea for a lunar-inspired cocktail reception, live commentary from astronomers, and stellar gastronomy.

Jumeirah Mallorca is located at Carrer de Bèlgica, S/N, 07108 Port de Sóller, Illes Balears, Spain

Mandarin Oriental Punta Negra, Mallorca

Mandarin Oriental’s first Balearic resort takes over the former Hotel Punta Negra on Mallorca’s southwest coast, a pine-fringed headland in Calvià, close to Puerto Portals. Renovated by Estudio Lamela with HKS, the 131-room property is arranged to sit low among Aleppo pines, rocky coves and Mediterranean views: protected buildings have been restored, with their new volumes opening fan-like towards the sea, and bungalows placed by the water’s edge. Six dining venues include concepts by Nobu Matsuhisa and Dani García, while the spa, gardens, art pathway, tennis, golf and coastal yoga add the usual Mandarin Oriental flair. For the 12 August eclipse, the property is offering guests the opportunity to watch from a private yacht or traditional boat, rise above the coastline by helicopter, or join a limited 15-person hot-air balloon flight, with viewing lenses provided. On land, a 12-day Eclipse Advent Calendar brings the build-up into the resort through infusions, local sweets and bites.

Mandarin Oriental Punta Negra, Mallorca is located at Carrer Punta Negra, 12, 07181 Palmanova, Illes Balears, Spain

Nakar Hotel

A 1950s building was coaxed back to its former glory, thanks to local Palma hotelier Toni Ramis and architect Magi Marqués, who together transformed the Pension Nacar building on one of the city’s liveliest streets into the 57-room Nakar Hotel. Along with designer Marga Rotger’s touches – contemporary accents of pale oak, stone, black lacquered iron, glass and copper – a rationalist design aesthetic runs throughout. The result is a harmonious marriage of neutral colours, soothing lighting and simple planes, which together create the calm atmosphere that is Nakar’s signature. This commitment to relaxation is punctuated by the presence of a subterranean spa, where bamboo details, a shadowy palette and a heated pool, steam bath and sauna offer holistic rejuvenation. Elsewhere, a ninth-floor rooftop sundeck and infinity pool offer a privileged vantage point from which to enjoy the eclipse, while a more subdued mood can be found at CUIT Bar and Restaurant, which serves local cuisine from chef Miquel Calent.

Nakar Hotel is located Av. de Jaume III, 21, Centre, 07012 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain

Nobis Hotel Palma

Nobis Hotel Palma sits in the city’s Old Town among Gothic churches and stone squares, occupying one of the city’s oldest buildings: a 12th-century former Islamic palace, later a noble Mallorcan residence. Wingårdhs, working with Jordi Herrero Arquitectos and Eduardo Garcia Acuna Arquitecto, handled the renovation with due restraint, restoring vaulted ceilings, Gothic archways and a pair of courtyards, one fitted with a small dipping pool around an ancient fountain. The 37 rooms and suites bring Scandinavian calm to Spanish limestone walls and beamed ceilings, with wood, wool, leather, Örsjö lamps, Ogeborg carpets, Flos pendants, ceramics by Miquel Segura and tapestries by Leela Rome throughout. NOI Palma serves sharing plates beneath a textile ceiling installation; Mirall Bar brings velvet and drama to nine-metre-high stone walls; the rooftop looks towards La Seu Cathedral. For the eclipse, Nobis is taking guests out to sea. Its 12 August sailing experience leaves from Palma for around six and a half hours in the bay, with hotel-to-port transport, a professional skipper, swimming in a turquoise cove, snorkelling kit, paddle boards, dinner and drinks on board, and a champagne toast during the eclipse.

Nobis Hotel Palma is located at Carrer de les Caputxines, 9, Centre, 07003 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain

Sant Francesc Hotel Singular

Combining an historic 1880 manor house, a prime location on Plaça de Sant Francesc, and contemporary design, Sant Francesc Hotel Singular serves as a stylish base camp from which to experience Palma. Originally built as the residence of the Alomar family, the 42-room hotel is carved from a thoroughly renovated neoclassical structure where original details such as frescoes, beams and coffered ceilings abound. Working closely with the building’s current owners, the Soldevila Ferrer family, architect Tolo Cursach, interior decorator Maria Jose Cabré and landscape designer Ana Esteve successfully merged features such as a Baroque façade with present-day designs from Antonio Citterio, Jaime Hayon and Paola Navone. The Quadrat restaurant, led by chefs Àlvar Albaladejo and Carles Forteza, serves Med-inspired dishes, while a rooftop pool and terrace are ideally placed for soaking up the sun with cooling cocktails and breathtaking views of the Mallorcan capital. Another privileged rooftop view.

Sant Francesc Hotel Singular is located at Plaça de Sant Francesc, 5, Centre, 07001 Palma, Illes Balears, Spain

Club de Mar Mallorca has never been just another marina. Founded in 1972, as Palma was becoming an international sailing destination, it helped draw large yachts from the French Riviera and place the city on the Mediterranean nautical map. After a five-and-a-half-year redevelopment, the club has reopened with whimsical interiors by Madrid-based designer Marta de la Rica.

Sail into Club de Mar in Mallorca

Her brief was to honour the club’s past without turning it into a museum of maritime nostalgia. ‘I wanted to create a unity of purpose through colour, material and shape,’ says de la Rica. She looked to vintage Riva runabouts – their high-varnish hulls, lacquered surfaces and easy glamour – as well as the club’s own 1970s origins, ‘an era that expressed luxury in a very sensorial and relaxed way’.

High-gloss lacquered wood runs through the bars, counters and wall panels, with slats, softened corners and rounded edges giving the rooms a nautical language without anchors on the wall. Light catches the varnish, chrome and glass, warming the interiors as it moves through the space.

The palette borrows from nautical flags, with red, blue and yellow drawn from the International Code of Signals. Stripes appear across upholstery and textiles, while sculptural furniture, rounded geometries, burgundy conical lamps and oval bars give the club a strong visual identity. Much of it was custom-designed, with nautical antiques from the club archive placed throughout: boat models, barometers, anchors and diving helmets. ‘Antiques bring soul and history to a space,’ says de la Rica.

Looking towards Palma’s Old Town and cathedral, the terrace feels afloat. ‘When you’re on the terrace looking out towards the Old Town and the cathedral, it feels as though you’re on a boat,’ says de la Rica. For her, the sea is present ‘not through thematic elements, but through materials, proportions and light’. The result is glossy, graphic and rooted in place: a 1970s-tinged yacht club interior that knows exactly where it belongs.

Club de Mar is located at Muelle Pelaires, 07015 Palma, Balearic Islands, Spain

Faro Santander, a major new cultural destination about to launch northern Spain, has just announced its opening date – 8 September 2026 – and unveiled its majestic home, a period building redesigned by Chipperfield Architects. The historic Pereda Building in Santander, which was until recently the headquarters of Banco Santander, is nine years into its transformation journey to host the expansive art collection of the bank’s philanthropic foundation and invite visitors into its masterpiece-laden galleries.

Explore the new home for Faro Santander

The Pereda Building is an instantly recognisable, listed landmark, known by locals as a key point on Santander’s seafront. Chipperfield Architects has been hard at work, refreshing and reimagining the former office building into a thoroughly contemporary space for culture. Now, spanning ten storeys, the building will house the Banco Santander Collection and its thousands of artworks.

The interior – some 10,000 sq m of usable floor space – now includes 3,000 sq m of galleries across five floors. Respecting the original structure while refining and upgrading it for 21st-century art standards, the renovation sees the building awarded an Outstanding BREEAM certification, with a score of 92.96 – 'the world’s highest registered by a museum or cultural space', the museum's representatives explain.

Beyond simply restoring a historic structure, or creating a high-profile home for a private art collection, the project has a strong civic face too, David Chipperfield reminds visitors: 'Architecturally, it boasts a complex and multi-layered history.' The building has been part of the city's history for centuries, its oldest parts erected in 1795 and added to, reworked, and expanded over time. A major 1961 renovation by architect Javier González de Riancho was one of its more recent chapters.

'We focused on rethinking the spaces and connections a public building needs, while recognising that the real significance of the project lies in the institution’s commitment to openness, culture and participation,' says Chipperfield. He adds: 'The project is the result of a shared ambition to reimagine Banco Santander’s former offices as a civic and cultural space for the city.'

Daniel Vega Pérez de Arlucea, director of Faro Santander, concurs: 'The transformation was about pursuing our vision of creating a cultural centre that is open to everyone – somewhere that is welcoming and accessible, with wonderfully diverse and high-quality spaces, where every visitor can enjoy a truly unique experience.'

farosantander.com

davidchipperfield.com

Barcelona's iconic Tres Xemeneies (Three Chimneys) thermal power plant - celebrated by architecture enthusiasts for its brutalist architecture silhouette and enjoyed by locals for the clandestine nudist beach at its feet- is carving out a new place on the city's cultural agenda. A major transformation into a media hub is set to follow.

Inside Three Chimneys, and the venue's future

It has been 15 years since Three Chimneys ceased operations, abandoned by Spain's national power company as its infrastructure became obsolete and its environmental impact increasingly untenable. Since then, the complex has become a symbol of an earlier Barcelona, before the city's transition towards renewable energy and legislation that curtailed development along the coastline.

Its three 200-metre-high, sand-coloured chimneys rising against the Mediterranean are often the first landmark seen by visitors arriving by air. In recent years, events including the Manifesta Biennial, open-air cinema screenings and, most recently, an exhibition responding to the themes of the 2026 UIA World Congress of Architects have drawn curious visitors to the site. For the most part, however, it has remained an extraordinary urban void.

Architecture practices MARVEL and Garcés de Seta Bonet Arquitectes have been commissioned to transform the complex into Catalunya Media City, a major hub for research, education, exhibitions and congresses. Recognising that Three Chimneys is Barcelona's defining industrial landmark, the architects aim to preserve as much of the existing structure as possible while opening the site to the public with new green spaces, pedestrian promenades and direct access to the beach.

A new transparent rectangular volume will extend south from the turbine hall towards the sea, accommodating the site's new programme while leaving the historic structure largely intact. Strategic cuts through the existing building will improve circulation and strengthen the relationship between old and new. Jordi Garcés, co-founder of Garcés de Seta Bonet Arquitectes, explained: 'We have designed a proposal that works through connections and knots, temporal, landscape and territorial.'

The project also follows passive design principles. Energy generation will come from 4,500 square metres of rooftop solar panels, while the north-facing façade will incorporate terraces and balconies overlooking the River Besòs and neighbouring Badalona. 'These architectural elements at different heights will offer new perspectives of the city,' stated Garcés. 'As if it were a piece of land art.'

uia2026bcn.org

More than 10,000 architects from 130 countries gathered for the UIA World Congress of Architects 2026, the profession's flagship event taking place in Barcelona this week, and held every three years. Under the theme Becoming. Architectures for a Planet in Transition, talks, exhibitions and debates unfolded across the International Convention Centre, the DHub Design Museum and the disused Tres Chimeneas thermal power plant. Record summer temperatures only sharpened the urgency of the conversations, as speakers called on architecture to respond to an increasingly unstable planet.

6 key takeaways from the UIA World Congress of Architects 2026

Organisers described the programme as 'purposefully overwhelming', and they delivered. Six thematic strands unfolded over three days, each curated by a team of Barcelona-based architects working across disciplines including housing, civic infrastructure and installation design. The result felt unusually democratic. Emerging practices, researchers and activists were given equal footing with established figures, including Shigeru Ban and Smiljan Radić, signalling a profession interested in ideas over hierarchy.

Becoming 'More Than Human' and 'Circular'

The opening sessions argued that architecture must move beyond designing solely for people. Becoming More Than Human explored models of coexistence between humans and wider ecological systems, with landscape architect Catherine Mosbach presenting projects that embed themselves within existing environments rather than dominate them.

Material scarcity and resourcefulness defined Becoming Circular. French practice Lacaton & Vassal joined Barcelona studio H Arquitectes to champion an architecture of restraint, arguing that careful resource management and circular construction can produce greater spatial, environmental and social generosity. Doing more with less has become less a design philosophy than a necessity.

Becoming 'Embodied' and 'Interdependent'

Becoming Embodied shifted the focus to architecture's social and cultural impact. Sri Lankan architect Palinda Kannangara demonstrated how Buddhist philosophy, adaptive reuse and a light environmental footprint can shape elegant contemporary homes. Aga Khan Award-winning architect Marina Tabassum presented a mobile bamboo housing system developed for Bangladesh's shifting river communities, where architecture is measured by adaptability rather than permanence.

The Congress repeatedly returned to architecture's civic responsibility. 'Space is never neutral. It shapes society. Everything is interconnected. Rethink architecture as a framework,' said Congress curator Mariona Bendito. Professor Juan Herreros echoed the sentiment, arguing that architecture must become 'a series of integrated systems' capable of addressing planetary challenges rather than isolated buildings.

Becoming 'Hyper Conscious' & 'Attuned'

Technology emerged as both an opportunity and a responsibility in Becoming Hyper Conscious. Eyal Weizman, founder of Forensic Architecture, outlined how advanced modelling and open source intelligence have been used to document the destruction of Gaza, arguing that architects have a role in preserving evidence and collective memory as much as designing new buildings.

The most quietly persuasive conversations came in Becoming Attuned, where architects defended the value of the ordinary. 'There is a raw beauty in the vernacular,' said Swiss architect Leopold Banchini. Jaume Mayol, of Mallorca-based studio Ted'A, questioned why contemporary housing has abandoned the everyday spaces that encourage neighbourly interaction. 'Where are the galleries and the alcoves in new residential apartments? Legislation is killing social acts.'

The venue: Tres Chimeneas

Each evening, the Congress moved to Tres Chimeneas, the decommissioned power station that in the coming years will be transformed into a civic and media hub. Grandstands overlooking Barcelona's once- industrial waterfront hosted open discussions between architects, residents and visitors, while installations, music and performances transformed the vast site into something closer to a cultural festival than an industry conference.

That shift in format may prove one of the Congress's most lasting ideas. Architecture often struggles to communicate beyond its own profession. Here, discussions around affordable housing, climate resilience and public space felt accessible, immediate and shared. If the discipline hopes to shape the future, it must continue to convince the public that it has a stake in it.

uia2026bcn.org

Madrid is a long way from the sea, which is partly what makes new bathhouse Riela’s founding image so persuasive. Its name comes from the old Spanish rielar: the shimmer of moonlight on water; light broken across a surface, something seen indirectly.

Riela Bathhouse, Madrid

Designed by Barcelona-based architecture firm Oficina Satélite, Riela takes that idea and brings it into the city. Inspired by Roman thermae, Japanese onsen and Russian banya, the space has been conceived as a modern setting for an old ritual: a 75-minute, self-guided circuit through heat, steam, water and cold. Guests move between a Finnish sauna, a hammam, a mineral hot pool, cold plunges, and a heated granite stone.

The venue avoids the usual language of urban wellness, with its beige softness and scented neutrality. Instead, Riela feels darker, more mineral and cinematic. Backlit glass bricks cast a greenish glow through the corridors, giving the rooms the quality of something submerged. Rough walls hold the light rather than reflect it. Granite from Madrid quarries gives the pools and benches a certain local weight, while wood is reserved for the sauna, where it brings warmth and recovery.

Oficina Satélite sought to achieve the sensation of stepping out of water on a summer day in Menorca, when the body is slowed and the skin is alert, soaking in light from several directions at once. That idea is visible through Riela's glass-block corridors glowing like diluted moonlight; pools sunk into rough, shadowed rooms; granite benches held against walls of pale green opacity.

‘Riela is a place where people and emotions coexist. As in Turkish baths or Russian banyas, there is social exchange: the space is open, free, non-intrusive. But that exchange happens in an environment of low light, where you don’t feel exposed; you feel held,’ say Marc Castaño and Laia Rafel, founders of Oficina Satélite.

Guests can book individual session passes or opt for a monthly membership. The hot-cold circuit is designed to stimulate circulation, support recovery and help regulate the nervous system, with regular use linked to better sleep, improved mood and greater resilience to stress. Expansion plans for Riela are already underway, with a second, much larger Madrid location on the horizon before the concept ventures into Barcelona, Paris and London.

Riela is located at Calle de Apodaca, 20, Centro, 28004 Madrid, Spain

Tucked between two of Mallorca’s most photogenic villages, Hotel Corazón has found the answer to the popularity of the island’s mountainous spine: a sunbaked 18th-century finca where the outside world feels very far away.

Wallpaper* checks into Hotel Corazón, Mallorca

What’s on your doorstep?

Amid the 90km of the Serra de Tramuntana mountain range, rocky headlands studded with cypress drop to glittering coves. Along this range sits a trail of villages – Valldemossa, Fornalutx, Deià, Sóller – that have variously claimed the ‘most beautiful in Europe’ crown.

That said, predictably, the hordes have descended (or ascended). In high season, it can be difficult to move through the honey-coloured streets. Hotel Corazón sidesteps all of that. Between the amenity-rich Sóller and the picture-perfect Deià (both still worth a visit), a veer off the hairpin road brings you to a historic finca ensconced in palms.

Who’s behind the design?

The 17-room property is owned and run by photographer Kate Bellm and her husband, green thumb Edgar Lopez, and you can tell: everything here – from the interiors to the printed ‘newspapers’ left in each room – bears the mark of people who care deeply about how things look and feel.

The original restoration was led by Mallorca-based studio Moredesign, working alongside local artisans, metalworkers and ceramicists. The main body of the hotel sits around a cobblestone courtyard in shades of terracotta, punctuated by monstera-filled amphorae. The original chapel remains, repurposed now as a spa.

The dining terrace and conservatory were expanded and redesigned in 2024 by London-based designer Tatjana von Stein, who brought prior experience in Mallorca from her work on Làlia, a private members' club in Palma. These areas feel bohemian but never eccentric: hand-carved marble tables, mustard banquettes and benches adorned with sun motifs meet gingham napkins and sailor-striped cushions. The view of the Serra de Tramuntana from the terrace is breathtaking – particularly at dinner, when the peaks turn blue in the twilight and their summits swirl with cloud.

The room to book

Hotel Corazón has two suites, 13 individually designed superior and double rooms and two garden rooms. I stayed in one of the last – modest in scale but the most private on the property, set apart from the main building beside Lopez’s cactus and succulent garden. They’re cosy, with candy-pink bed linen, though let down somewhat by an almost total lack of storage.

Holy Wood, one of the superior rooms I also had the privilege of experiencing, is Jacques Couëlle-esque in its wobbly doors, rounded steps and bumpy surfaces. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a right angle here. These rooms combine stone, limewash and linen in the shades of pink, beige and sage, offset by sheepskin rugs, rough ceramics and oversized art.

Staying for drinks and dinner?

The hotel’s kitchen garden is integral to the dining offering. Farmer-in-residence Emma Philip harvests produce that reaches the plate within minutes, and chef Eliza Parchanska’s cooking is vibrant – finished with edible flowers which make each dish positively sculptural. Sweet potato noodles with spicy sesame dressing are transformatively good, a crispy rice salad with edamame and peanuts detonates on the tongue, and fried artichokes with pistachio aioli have a quality that seems somehow greater than the sum of their parts.

Where to switch off

Perched on a vantage point over the sea, the pool is surrounded by pampas grass and rosemary, with carritx-covered umbrellas, 1970s-style loungers and tasselled hammocks for comfort and shade. A WhatsApp ordering system is a good idea in theory, undermined by the area’s patchy signal in practice. Pilates and yoga sessions, offered free to guests, are an excellent way to get into the hotel’s clean-living spirit.

The verdict

For the aesthete, Hotel Corazón feels like heaven – from the whimsical interiors to the kitchen-garden cooking, every detail has been tended to with a rare level of conviction. In a corner of Mallorca that feels at risk of being loved to death, the property carves out its own paradise.

Hotel Corazón is located at Carretera de Deià, km. 56, 7, 07100 Sóller, Balearic Islands, Spain. Rates: from 350 EUR

Concéntrico 2026 launched in Logroño on a scorching hot summer’s day (18 June) – yet the crowds braved the 30-degree-plus temperatures, arriving in droves to stroll through its 22 installations and meet their creators, an international mix of architecture and design studios, who were present to discuss their concepts and issues around urban space and public access – the architecture festival's core concern. The growing engagement the festival gets from both visitors and locals every year (this, its 12 edition since it was founded in 2015, being the biggest ever) is a mark of success for any design fair.

The achievement feels all the more notable when when you factor in that this is not Venice, London or New York; Logroño is the capital of La Rioja, a small town of 150,000 core inhabitants, amid countryside just south of the Basque Country (the nearest airport is a 1.5-hour drive away).

Explore the 22 installations at Concéntrico 2026

The status of Concéntrico 2026 is particularly thanks to the drive and fortitude of a single man – its director, Javier Peña Ibañez. Tirelessly working with local authorities, sponsors, schools, creative councils and architecture and design practices across the world, the Logroño-born architect founded and runs the festival every year, his ambition fuelling its success.

'Concéntrico emerged from the desire to make architecture accessible again, not as an abstract discipline but as something real, physical and collective,' he told us in an interview previewing the festival, earlier in the month. 'One thing that still defines the festival today is that everything happens at a 1:1 scale. There are no models or speculative renderings; the projects are built directly in the city. People can enter them, touch them, play with them, ignore them or completely reinvent how they are used.'

Now, the festival takes over sites across town – from locations in established parks and sports grounds to in-between or neglected sites awaiting redevelopment, and even the ruins of existing structures. Every studio (or group of architects) is assigned a site each, proceeding to craft a pavilion or intervention, which are then erected for the town to explore and to instigate global conversation. This year's installations tick all the boxes – they are open and playful, colourful and thought-provoking. Importantly, they are available and accessible to all, and Logroño embraces them.

2026 participants, AAU Anastas' Elias and Yousef Anastas, highlight this accessibility and communal spirit as a key driver to the festival's success: 'What we really appreciated about Concéntrico is how unpretentious it feels. It feels connected to the city and its inhabitants. The installations have in common that they are all defined by their relationship to their surroundings- sometimes harmonious, challenging, unexpected, contradictory, or useful. It is the collectiveness of all these interventions that ultimately becomes Concéntrico. Together, they transform the experience of the city in a way that no single project could achieve on its own. Achieving this is both brilliant and incredibly difficult, so credit to the organisers for making it happen.'

Concéntrico 2026 trends

Concéntrico 2026's contributors include 2026 Pritzker Prize winner Smiljan Radić Clarke, AAU Anastas, 2050+, Future Firm, DC DF, PPAA and Taelon7 (whose past work includes the new Accra pavilion Limbo Engawa). We explored their efforts – and more – to bring you the trends and highlights of what the architecture world is thinking and feeling through the festival's output.

Architecture and the senses

Do you think architecture can be predominantly experienced through the eyes? Think again. In Concéntrico 2026, smell, touch and hearing played a key part, with installations expanding creatively to include all senses through a number of designs – making engaging with architecture through one's senses a big trend in this year's iteration.

The aforementioned team – AAU Anastas – are among them; their piece, Cathedral for One, explores not only building with stone – one of the studio's key fascinations at the moment – but also offers an intimate cocoon made of marble where visitors can enter and listen to an audio piece by Hania Rani. More aural delights across the festival include Sounds of Architecture Records' Concéntrico vinyl (the architectural label is producing an album dedicated to Logroño by recording sounds of the city).

A mature garden developed by IC 98 and Suomi/Koivisto Architects over a year in the ruins of a dilapidated house offers both blissful calm and a joyful blend of smells, from various floral and herb mixes throughout.

Meanwhile, while many of the designs on show invite the touch – Terroir by Boltshauser Architekten and Garbizu Collar, made of earth, is a key one – few bring the warmth and sense of participation quite the same way as Dancing on Architecture's El Plano Latente, which invites passersby to dance around it, proposing walking as urban choreography, and will eventually be set aflame to celebrate the summer solstice.

Nature and climate

No surprises that climate is at the forefront of the participating architects' minds. This is expressed through several projects focusing on nature and gardens – such as the IC 98 and Suomi/Koivisto Architects scheme mentioned above. The library garden by Sahra Hersi also touches on gardening but from a different angle - urging the local community to take part, but centred, undoubtedly, on nature and planting.

Hersi said at the opening: 'We workshoped with the local residents to see what community garden means to them. Some thought of it as a balcony, a garden for their mother, a play garden. So, I developed this idea of the shed. Some of the flora, the birds, the bees and the fish that were present in all of the gardens [in the workshop] were imagined here. There will be a seed library. The idea is that this space will be a space for people to come and get free seeds, and then the seeds will be spread out across the city or the town.'

Natural materials abound too. Apart from Terroir, there is also Raumlabor's Hot, Cool, Soft, which utilises a natural fabric roof to create its own climate zone within the dense city centre. Shade, Breeze, Cooling by Noof Group looks at similar issues, addressing the thermal vulnerability of public spaces by crafting a cool mini garden with its own micro-climate.

Play

Walking through and sitting are available and indeed necessary at most of the exhibits, a part of what makes Concéntrico a highly participatory, bodily festival. A strong group among the installations actively encourage pay within the displays too.

Smiljan Radic Clarke's Circus piece places the visitor into a miniature, typical circus tent, where a film showing performers doing their acts encourages guests to feel part of the activity. At Summer Shapes Memories by the Ebro River, boats on rollers invite visitors to climb on and imitate a boat ride in its waters – a typical summer memory of many of the local inhabitants in the region.

Frontones Danzantes (Dancing Pelota Walls) by 2050+ revives the collective spirit of Basque pelota, offering the space for contemporary players to take part and make their own games. A similar spirit appears at Sidelined: A Game To Rethink Togetherness by Amanda Pinatih and Gabriel Fontana, who use a series of exercises with local students to highlight the inclusive nature of sport.

Taelon7's Juergen Benson-Strohmayer, whose installation offers rest and respite to shoppers on a busy street, says of the festival's tactile and dynamic nature: 'Concéntrico is special because of the opportunity to realise something physical with a lot of interaction and engagement on the ground all the way from the production, engaging with the teams, the landscapes of Rioja but also, then in the setting up and then the city, how people work with and interact with the structures that we built. I have heard it's always different.'

More Concéntrico 2026 highlights

Standalone pieces across town took over anything from car parks and regular pavements to the plaza outside the Rafael Moneo-designed city hall. Looking beyond trends, these are some of the Concéntrico 2026 highlights.

Edge Assemblies by Taelon7

Architecture Ritual

Los Sabados by TŁO

Resonancia by PPAA

La Serrana de San Barnabe by Matilde Cassani Studio

Temblores de Superficie. Vino Y Smithson by Bear

Escalera de la Gigueña by Future Firm

Transtation by Parabase

Bayn by Farisalo-Saimi

Concéntrico 2026 runs 18-23 June 2026 in Logroño, Spain

concentrico.es

Concéntrico 2026 is opening its doors from 18-23 June, and the northern Spanish city of Logroño is in fervent preparation. Now in its 12th iteration, the architecture festival remains relatively small by some metrics – typically comprising about 20-25 lifesize installations each year within a place of just 150,000 inhabitants – but its immersive, city-wide nature has attracted rich responses from global, emerging and established studios alike.

Founded by architect Javier Peña Ibañez, who serves as its director – and supreme driving force – this is an event conceived, at its core, to celebrate participation and urban space. Its mission? To bring architecture out of its bubble, into the city, and invite all its residents to engage with it as part of their daily life. It draws big names, too, with MVRDV, Konstantin Grcic and Studio Ossidiana having taken part in past editions.

Concéntrico 2026: who, what, where

For Concéntrico 2026, 32 participants will create 24 installations. These will be, as in past years, spread across the city of Logroño, built on public sites, available for all to engage with – intentionally or casually, as part of the city's daily life. Participants include 2026 Pritzker Prize winner Smiljan Radić Clarke, AAU Anastas, 2050+, Future Firm, DC DF, PPAA and Taelon7 (whose past work includes the new Accra pavilion Limbo Engawa). The festival will run 18-23 June 2026.

Curious to learn more? We spoke to Javier Peña Ibañez to delve into the details and help you navigate the world's biggest small architecture festival.

Concéntrico: history and mission

Wallpaper*: What is Concéntrico?

Javier Peña Ibañez: Concéntrico is an international festival of architecture and design founded in Logroño in 2015. From the beginning, I was interested in participation and in discovering alternative forms of urban spatial practice that could connect cities more closely to the people who live in them. At that time, I was already working independently through installations and temporary projects in public space, but I felt there were many architects, artists and designers exploring similar questions without really having a shared platform for dialogue.

I also found it surprising that cities were full of festivals dedicated to music, theatre, cinema or literature, while architecture – something everyone experiences every day – often remained confined to professional circles. Concéntrico emerged from the desire to make architecture accessible again, not as an abstract discipline but as something real, physical and collective.

One thing that still defines the festival today is that everything happens at a 1:1 scale. There are no models or speculative renderings; the projects are built directly in the city. People can enter them, touch them, play with them, ignore them or completely reinvent how they are used. That direct encounter changes the relationship people have not only with architecture, but with the city itself.

Concéntrico's evolution

W*: How has Concéntrico changed over the years, from its first iteration to the celebration it is today?

JP-I: The first editions were much smaller and more intuitive. We mainly worked in courtyards and small spaces in the historic centre of Logroño, trying to reveal hidden urban qualities or overlooked heritage. But very quickly we realised that if we wanted to change the way people related to public space, we also had to work where everyday life was actually happening.

That shift changed the festival enormously. Over the years we moved into parks, peripheral neighbourhoods, parking lots, riverbanks, vineyards and large public squares. We started working not only with architecture as an object, but with architecture as a way of producing encounters, conversations and new uses for familiar places.

At the same time, the themes became broader. Concéntrico today includes climate adaptation, sound, performance, accessibility, collective rituals, educational programmes and long-term urban processes. Some installations disappear after a week, but others leave traces behind: a new use, a new name, a memory or even the beginning of a permanent transformation. That tension between temporary action and long-term impact has become fundamental to the festival.

Over the years, Concéntrico has also made us understand that the street is not simply a transit space or an urban backdrop. It is a place of learning. It is where people negotiate how to live together, where identities are performed, where rituals emerge, where conflict becomes visible and where forms of belonging are constantly constructed and contested.

Public space is political not only because demonstrations happen there, but because everyday life happens there. Children learn how to relate to others there. Communities recognise themselves there. Differences become visible there. Architecture, in that sense, is never neutral. Even temporary interventions can alter the atmosphere of a place, the way people move through it, or the kinds of encounters that become possible within it.

Highlights over the years

W*: Could you pick some highlights from past festivals for us?

JP-I: I usually remember projects less as isolated objects and more as situations that changed how people occupied the city. One project that I often return to is Pabellón 1973–2021 by Lanza Atelier [the architects behind the 2026 Serpentine Pavilion in London]. It transformed Rafael Moneo’s town hall square through an experimental use of curved brickwork, creating a temporary civic structure that completely altered the perception of one of Logroño’s most recognisable urban spaces. It demonstrated how a familiar material could be used in a completely unexpected way.

Another project I often think about is Types of Spaces by Palma and Hanghar. Installed in the passage of the former tobacco factory of La Rioja, the intervention reconstructed the emptiness of the site through a sequence of brick rooms open to the sky. What was interesting was not only the architecture itself, but the way it altered the scale and atmosphere of public space.

The project introduced domestic proportions into an urban passageway, allowing visitors to inhabit the installation rather than simply cross it. Water mist, crushed brick flooring and the mass of the ceramic walls transformed movement through the space into something slower and more intimate. It explored how architecture can completely change the emotional reading of a place using very elemental means: brick, proportion, repetition and atmosphere.

I would also highlight The Garden of Intersections by Studio Ossidiana, which transformed an overlooked urban site into a landscape of encounters between people, plants and non-human forms of life. It was one of those projects that expanded our understanding of what architecture can be: less an object and more an ecology of relationships.

For me, these projects are important because they show that temporary architecture can create lasting shifts in perception. Sometimes the installation disappears completely, but the way people understand a place never returns to what it was before.

Concéntrico 2026: theme and more

W*: Let’s move to this year. What’s in store for this year’s festival?

JP-I: This year’s edition is structured around three curatorial lines: Identity and Fiction, Urban Ecologies and Ephemeral Agents.

Identity and Fiction emerged from a question that has accompanied the festival for years: how do we build a sense of belonging? Cities are full of inherited symbols, rituals and narratives that shape how we understand ourselves collectively. The projects in this section look at temporary architecture as a way of producing new stories, drawing from regional costumes, travelling circuses, celebrations, ceremonies and popular traditions. Rather than treating identity as something fixed, they understand it as something constantly performed, negotiated and reinvented.

Smiljan Radić Clarke’s Circo, for example, imagines a fragile travelling circus installed on soft ground in the historic centre of the city, recalling temporary architectures associated with itinerancy, gathering and spectacle. Matilde Cassani Studio’s project at the Arco de San Bernabé takes inspiration from the traditional regional costume of La Rioja, using textile references and ceremonial forms to explore the relationship between folklore, fiction and urban identity.

Urban Ecologies focuses on climate, landscape, material reuse, depaving and adaptation processes within the city. Ephemeral Agents looks at temporary architecture as a tool for activating social relations through sound, movement, accessibility and collective participation.

What feels different this year is the stronger emphasis on activation and collective experience. Many projects are not simply installations to look at, but situations that invite people to gather, listen, play, rest or participate together.

There is also a stronger ecological dimension running through the festival. We are not only talking about sustainability as a concept, but working directly with real urban processes: removing pavement to recover permeable ground, reusing infrastructures in disuse, creating climate shelters or working with discarded materials at an architectural scale.

2026 participants

W*: Who are some of the key participants for 2026?

JP-I: [As already noted] Smiljan Radić Clarke will present Circo, a temporary structure inspired by travelling circuses and fragile architectures of observation and gathering; [and] Matilde Cassani Studio is working with local textile traditions and rituals around the Arco de San Bernabé. AAU Anastas will present Cathedral for One, a stone structure conceived for a single visitor and activated through daily sound services with works by artists including Yara Asmar, Nicolas Jaar, Hania Rani and Mohammad Reza Mortazavi.

In the Urban Ecologies section, Sahra Hersi’s The Library Garden transforms a paved square next to the Rafael Azcona Library into a civic garden connected to depaving, seeds, care and climate adaptation. Parabase will reuse components from an electrical substation in Transtation, while noof group will develop a pilot project exploring shade, cooling and thermal comfort in public space.

We also have projects by raumlaborberlin, Boltshauser × Garbizu Collar, BEAR, Future Firm, DF DC, Gabriel Fontana and Amanda Pinatih, 2050+, TŁO and many others. The interesting thing is not only the names themselves, but the coexistence of very different ways of thinking about public space within the same urban framework.

This year's wildcard

W*: What’s the most unusual installation this year?

JP-I: Perhaps Circo by Smiljan Radić Clarke. What interests me is that it introduces uncertainty into the city. A circus is never entirely architecture, never entirely performance, never entirely public space. It belongs somewhere in between.

For one week, that ambiguity becomes part of the city. It creates a temporary condition, where fiction, gathering and urban life overlap.

AAU Anastas’ Cathedral for One would be another candidate, but for opposite reasons. While Circo is collective and extroverted, Cathedral for One is radically intimate. It is conceived for a single visitor and constructed entirely from recovered stone fragments. You enter alone into a stone structure activated through sound pieces by artists including Nicolas Jaar, Yara Asmar and Hania Rani. It feels suspended somewhere between architecture, ritual and listening space.

The Concéntrico legacy

W*: What are you hoping for visitors to take away from visiting the Concéntrico experience?

JP-I: I hope visitors leave with the feeling that cities are not fixed. Public space is often perceived as something already decided and already defined. Concéntrico tries to reopen that imagination.

The festival allows people to experience familiar places differently, even if only temporarily. A parking lot becomes a collective playground, a paved square becomes a garden, a courtyard becomes a listening chamber, a bridge becomes a social space. Once you experience that transformation physically, it becomes difficult to see the city as completely immutable again.

Many of the projects we develop are not only about spatial transformation, but about mediation. They create situations where people can recognise themselves differently, or recognise others differently. Through fiction, ritual, play, celebration or collective experience, architecture becomes a tool for imagining other forms of coexistence.

I think this is especially important today, because cities have become highly polarised environments where even very basic urban questions – mobility, climate, public space – are quickly absorbed into ideological conflict. In that context, architecture still has the capacity to produce shared experiences that escape fixed positions, even temporarily.

After 12 years, I increasingly see Concéntrico less as a series of installations and more as a cultural framework for reading the city differently. The projects are temporary, but what remains is often a shift in perception: the understanding that public space is mutable, and that the ways we inhabit it can also change.

Concéntrico 2026 runs 18-23 June 2026 in Logroño, Spain

concentrico.es

Tilda Swinton is to perform a new live work at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao this June, created in collaboration with Dom Pérignon and co-created with the French fashion historian and curator Olivier Saillard. The two-day event, taking place on 5 and 6 June 2026, staged in the museum’s Frank Gehry-designed atrium, marks the Champagne house’s most ambitious foray into live performance to date. Tickets are available from 21 May from the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao website.

Tilda Swinton at Guggenheim Museum Bilbao

Titled ‘House of Gestures’, the performance centres on Swinton moving through and inhabiting space, using physical movement and costume changes as a way of evoking character, memory and place. Gesture becomes the sole means of expression; without script or speech, there is only Swinton’s body and what it wears, with garments worn and replaced before the audience, as a way of conjuring stories from an otherwise empty stage.

The piece was developed in close conversation with Dom Pérignon’s chef de cave Vincent Chaperon, whose own thinking about the relationship between wine and landscape runs through the work’s conceptual framework. As he explains: 'A great wine is the place of the soul. It is both landscape and portrait.'

For Swinton, the parallels between performance and champagne are more than merely figurative. 'With performance, we like to create a free zone where something honest and original can occur and become a shared experience in real time,” she says. “A great Champagne has much in common with this idea. Both are rooted in space and authentic presence, not representation or interpretation..'

The Bilbao performances coincide with the unveiling of Dom Pérignon’s 2018 vintage. The new release is the first to be produced entirely under the stewardship of Chaperon, who took sole charge of the cellars following the departure of his predecessor Richard Geoffroy in 2019.

The collaboration is the latest in a long line of creative partnerships that Dom Pérignon has cultivated since 2005, when the maison began working with artists and cultural figures including Karl Lagerfeld, David Lynch, Lenny Kravitz and Jean-Michel Basquiat.

Those projects took the form of limited-edition bottle and packaging designs. Lagerfeld created a studded case for the 1998 vintage, Lynch contributed chiaroscuro-inflected designs for the 2003 vintage, Kravitz applied hammered goldsmith metalwork to the shield of the 2008, while the more recent Basquiat collaboration, realised with the artist’s estate, placed his 1983 painting ‘In Italian’ on a special edition of the 2015 vintage.

The Swinton commission marks a decisive shift from pure product to something more experiential, involving live art staged inside one of the world’s most recognisable museum buildings.

Swinton is among several new collaborators, including Zoë Kravitz, Iggy Pop and Takashi Murakami, brought into Dom Pérignon’s current creative programme, launched in 2025 under the ethos ‘Creation is an eternal journey’. Swinton’s approach as an actress, artist and performer has long centred on the body as a vehicle for meaning, perhaps most famously in ‘The Maybe’ – first staged at the Serpentine in 1995 and reprised at MoMA in 2013 – in which she lay asleep in a glass vitrine, observed by the public without any explanation.

Swinton’s artistic concerns resonate with the themes Chaperon has articulated around terroir and time, not least in the way her performance reflects Dom Pérignon’s relationship with the concept of place. At the house’s vineyards at Hautvillers, near Épernay, the grapes for each vintage are harvested from plots of land with individual names, such as Côte à Bras, Chant de Linotte and Prières. The idea of a named, storied landscape as the source of both wine and meaning is central to what ‘House of Gestures’ sets out to explore and articulate.

Tickets for the public performances on 5 and 6 June are available from 21 May here

This Formentera house takes its name from its dreamy location – Ses Clotades, a piece of land that connects La Mola peninsula with the rest of the Spanish island. Rolling hills with low Mediterranean vegetation and small sand dunes form the landscape on a site that sits between a pine forest and agricultural land. It was these formations that the home's architect, the locally based Marià Castelló, drew on when designing the project – which references its context's 'addition and subtraction, ascent and descent, solidity and permeability, light and shadow'.

Step inside this new Formentera house

As a result, the residence was designed as a cluster of volumes, dotted with terraces and outdoor circulation areas. The tallest elements are surrounded by existing, mature trees that allow their crisp white forms to remain discreet within the landscape. The largest of the volumes feels more porous and permeable. The smallest feels opaque in comparison.

This fragmentation of the residential plan into sections also allows the home to adapt to different numbers of inhabitants. When more visitors are hosted here, the entire complex comes alive. When a smaller number stays at Ses Clotades, only the largest volume is occupied, as it is designed to function as an independent unit - becoming a much smaller Formentera house in its own right.

A connecting, multifunctional element between these two acts as both the entrance hall and a flexible space for inhabitation. Voids and courtyards offer different iterations of outdoor living. Their presence also ensures plenty of natural light travels to the lower ground level below, where a library and screening room, a gym and the service areas are located. A large-capacity cistern that harvests rainwater is also accommodated on this level, allowing the home to go off-grid with its water supply.

Indeed the volumetric arrangement and careful planning of openings and shading work hard at ensuring the home can be environmentally responsible too. Air circulation, temperature control and natural ventilation and cooling through open air patios and water features are some of this Formentera house's sustainable architecture features.

Meanwhile, the interiors tell a story through objects and artworks composed by artist Elena Vinyàrskaya, who acted as the curator of the home. The architect explains: 'Through a meticulous selection of her own artworks, signature furniture pieces, and storied objects, the interior ceases to be a mere container, becoming a tableau of textures and meanings. The chosen textiles, ceramics, and styling elements seek a balance between the formal purity of the house and the warmth required for habitation, ensuring that every corner narrates a unique story of well-being and refuge.'

m-ar.net

In the Catalonian city's very heart, a renovated Barcelona house is more than what meets the eye – with a history rooted in swashbuckling pirates who sailed the South American seas. Welcome to Casa el Pirata, a restored home which nods to its original architecture, inspired by Argentine palaces and rich pirate history.

Tour a historic pirate's home in this Barcelona house

In 1820, a pirate, called Antoni Cuyàs, was an eighteen-year-old from Mataró, Barcelona, who set sail for Argentina with just a basic knowledge of navigation. Swiftly, he became one of the most feared pirates among Brazilian ships, which, according to the documents of the time, rarely escaped Cuyàs’ cannon fire.

Having amassed a large fortune while young, he eventually abandoned life at sea and became a frequent advisor to the presidents of the era. He returned to Mataró in 1865 to live out his final years. Here, he purchased two houses and joined them together to form his personal home. Italian artists were commissioned to work on his residence, in a style that reminded him of the palaces he saw in Argentina.

In Mataró, and towards the end of his life, Cuyàs met an orphan boy who shared the same surname. With no heirs, he decided to adopt him. Now, following several generations of artists and writers, Cuyàs’ great-great-grandson, Manuel Cuyàs, together with his wife, Nuria, decided to renovate three rooms in the ancestral home, which still had the character of the pirate's original residence.

The couple worked with architect Raúl Sánchez to restore the entrance hall, the dining room, and the pirate’s room (which acts as a living room) – the last now listed by the heritage authorities. The architect wanted to make sure the rooms nodded to the past, while accommodating the needs of the present.

However, working with such a historical building, there were many challenges, as Sánchez explains: ‘Before our intervention, the rooms were full of pipes and wires from previous additions, and the house was also full of cracks.’ However, although amending serious issues, they decided to leave the smaller cracks in ceilings and walls alone, saying ‘there is no intention of injecting Botox.’

Finding solutions, the architect began to incorporate contemporary touches like a large stainless-steel plinth (an indispensable material for the pirate), which juxtaposes the layered wall colours, while also acting as a multi-functional furniture piece, containing a sofa area and storage, as well as carving a small working area.

Period paintings were restored, wallpaper preserved, and the original terracotta flooring was recovered and treated. ‘I love how seductive the stainless steel looks and how it contrasts with the explosion of colours of walls and ceilings,’ says the architect.

Modern-day needs, like electrical wiring, cooling systems and even a large television, are tucked away in intricate ways, such as a large mirrored cabinet, lined with a glossy yellow interior which hides the TV.

Says Sánchez:‘ I want visitors to feel the grandeur of the space, the additions over time, the adaptations we have done, but to feel that everything feels like a single space, a unitary work.’

These finer details allow the room to shine in its historic splendour, void of museum-like qualities, and coldness, but instead as a space that honours its past while accommodating the present.

raulsanchezarchitects.com

The port city of A Coruña on Spain’s Galician coast has become an unexpected destination for fashion and photography enthusiasts since the opening of the Marta Ortega Pérez (MOP) Foundation in 2022 (Ortega Pérez is the non-executive chair of Inditex, the parent company of Zara, which is based in the nearby Arteixo). It has hosted a slew of impressive exhibitions in its first few years, often bringing the work of a photographic great to Spain for the first time – such was the case for an Irving Penn retrospective, so too for David Bailey in ‘Changing Fashion’, and most recently Annie Leibovitz, whose career-spanning show is open until May.

This month, the foundation opened its fashion and photography library, an evolving collection of over 5,500 titles that are free to explore on-site. In the works for the past two years, the library is a natural extension of the MOP Centre’s broader cultural programme that aims to ‘to build a community that can engage with photography beyond the exhibition itself,’ explains Leticia Castromil, Director of the MOP Foundation. ‘Within that context, we have gradually built a body of references that reflect both the programme and the wider field we are part of. The library was conceived as a way to give that material its own space: not just to preserve it, but to make it accessible as part of a more integrated and continuous experience.’

The MOP Library in A Coruña, Spain

Housed on shelves that gradually spiral upwards – ‘the intention was to create a space that feels both intimate and monumental’ says Castromil – the vast collection spans books, magazines and catalogues from the late 20th century to the present day. It will grow significantly each year, by more than 200 titles. ‘Photography, fashion, and visual culture are disciplines that are deeply connected to the present,’ explains Castromil. ‘It is about building a living collection, not a static one.’

‘There are many special pieces within the collection, particularly rare fashion publications and out-of-print photography books that are not easily accessible through public libraries,’ she continues. Titles include photography books by Nan Goldin, Diane Arbus and Tim Walker; tomes on the influential illustration of Antonio Lopez or Milton Glaser’s graphic design; works dedicated to filmmakers like Larry Clark and John Waters; historic Comme des Garçons catalogues; and complete runs of magazines. ‘Early issues of magazines such as Vogue Italia under Franca Sozzani, Self Service, or Interview are especially meaningful – not only for their editorial quality but for the way they capture very specific cultural moments,' Castromil says.

Crucially, they are all free to discover – in-person only, which feels like a rarity in an increasingly digital-first world. ‘We see the library as a space for discovery and reflection. It is not conceived as a traditional reading room, but as an environment where visitors can engage with visual culture in a more intuitive and personal way,’ says Castromil. ‘Ultimately, we hope visitors will find in it a sense of curiosity and inspiration.’

You can book an appointment via the MOP Foundation website.

MOP Center, Muelle de Batería, Avenida de Jardines de Méndez Núñez s/n - 15003 - A Coruña, Galicia.

If there’s one thing that Wallpaper* does well, it’s houses – spotlighting architecturally arresting gems from around the globe and spanning the spectrum of modern design. Our inboxes are overflowing with news of the world’s most boundary-pushing architectural projects, and we strive to bring you the very best.

To ensure you don’t miss a thing – and to showcase the scope of residential architecture today – we’ve launched a monthly series: The Architecture Edit. Each instalment will highlight our favourite houses of the month: buildings that demonstrate creative planning, innovative methods and, of course, aesthetic excellence. Here are the best new houses of February 2026.

A leafy Hampstead home

A timber-clad extension in Hampstead, London, immerses a family in nature, fully opening onto a lush garden to create a flexible indoor-outdoor living space. The architect, Mata, worked carefully around mature trees, collaborating with arboriculturists to protect roots while extending the home’s ground floor. Glazed walls, tapered stainless-steel undersides and bespoke furniture blur the boundary between interior and exterior, while thoughtfully-crafted terraces and furnishings ensure functionality without compromising the natural setting.

Read about it here.

A minimalist Spanish house

In Gijón, Asturias, Casa Guadalupe by Hanghar blends minimalist aesthetics with prefabricated industrial methods. Its lightweight steel frame and modular panels allowed rapid assembly – in just 48 hours – on stilts, reducing site disruption and preserving the landscape. The house follows the terrain, opening to panoramic rural vistas while maintaining a restrained, methodical architectural language. The project demonstrates a flexible, sustainable approach to 21st-century housing, balancing precision, spatial quality and landscape connection while challenging conventional ideas about prefab homes.

Read about it here.

An Australian architect’s home

Stephen Collier’s home in Scarborough, south of Sydney, sits on a triangular plot near a railway, organised around a central courtyard. Constructed from steel framing, fibrocement walls and tiled floors, it features movable furniture and joinery that allow spaces to be reshaped according to season or activity. The courtyard, open or enclosed, includes a Teppanyaki stove and Japanese-style bath, connecting indoor living to nature. Elevated on concrete columns with operable hatches, the house is responsive to its bush setting and local climate. Designed over 21 years, it balances privacy, playfulness and immersion in the environment.

Read about it here.

An immersive Nova Scotia residence

Perched on steel stilts between rocky inclines, Omar Gandhi’s East River Residence in Nova Scotia embraces its rugged coastal surroundings. The linear structure frames views of the Atlantic Ocean and surrounding forest, while cedar and metal cladding complement open-plan living, yoga spaces and cosy timbered bedrooms. Expansive windows connect interiors to terraces and patios, fostering a strong sense of connection to the outdoors. This is enhanced by the way that the building follows the site’s natural topography, touching only lightly on the land.

Read about it here.

An icon of British modernism

This month, Six Pillars, a Grade II*-listed home in Dulwich designed by Valentine Harding with Tecton in 1932-34 and restored by John Winter in 2000, came on the market. This classic example of British modernism spans 3,500 sq ft over three storeys, and retains original features such as chevron parquet flooring, steel-framed windows and an art deco fireplace. The angled plan creates fluid living spaces including an open-plan kitchen, principal living room, four bedrooms and a rooftop retreat, while the minimalist façade, clerestory windows and six cylindrical pillars define its iconic profile.

Read about it here.

A modern Utrecht house

In Utrecht, a 1992 house by Mart van Schijndel reimagines elements of a former glass warehouse in bold modernist terms. Awarded the Rietveld Prize and now a municipal monument, the home features a lavender-and-grey plaster façade, two trapezoidal patios and folded plywood furniture designed by the architect. Light floods the open living areas, blurring indoors and outdoors, while a mezzanine suite offers a tranquil escape. The house reflects van Schijndel’s innovative vision and Dutch modernist traditions, and is now awaiting a new custodian.

Read about it here.

A green retreat in Paraguay

‘A Forest in the House’, designed by Equipo de Arquitectura in 2025 on Ypacarai Lake, Paraguay, is a 260 sq m indoor-outdoor retreat inspired by jazz. Three pavilions surround a fenced garden, connected by patios, with the main house containing kitchen, dining and living areas. Floor-to-ceiling glass doors integrate the lush landscape, while concrete floors and roofs create terraces and continuity. Trees are incorporated as design elements, and natural light and wind animate the spaces, resulting in a fluid, playful environment existing in perfect harmony with its tropical surroundings.

Read about it here.

An architect-designed Paris apartment

In Paris’s 11th arrondissement, Cyrus Ardalan renovated a 65 sq m apartment into a minimalist, industrial-leaning home. West-facing light fills an open-plan living area that combines lounge, dining and office zones, connected to a glass-paste kitchen. Two courtyard-facing bedrooms, a shower room and integrated storage maintain the home’s clean lines, while custom plywood furniture and a pivot door conceal or reveal the workspace. The apartment reflects Ardalan’s blend of modernist minimalism, functional architecture and craft-inspired materiality.

Read about it here.

Tradition meets modernity in Ukraine

The Reed Roof Guesthouses in central Ukraine, designed by YOD Group, reinterpret traditional hata-mazanka huts in a contemporary, minimalist style. Each self-contained unit features curved glass facades, tall thatched roofs and concrete cores, creating airy, light-filled spaces, while heat pumps and air conditioning ensure year-round comfort. Inside, organic furniture and tactile carpets connect residents to the surrounding landscape, creating a serene, sensory experience.

Read about it here.

An LA gem on the market

Ray Kappe’s Kappe House (1967) in Pacific Palisades, LA, spans 4,157 sq ft over seven levels on a sloping Rustic Canyon site. Interlocking redwood beams, vertical concrete supports and vast frameless glazing define the midcentury modern home, which includes a double-height living room, glass-walled office, built-in timber furniture, lap pool with spa, sauna, and multiple terraces. The house, which was once described as ‘the greatest house in Southern California’ by the LA Times, was owned by the Kappe family until 2025 and has been listed for $11.5 million.

Read about it here.

BD Barcelona has unveiled a reissued collection of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí’s furniture pieces. Each design is an exact replica of Gaudí’s work, reproduced using traditional methods, highlighting the craftsmanship and beauty of the furniture's solid varnished oak.

Discover Antoni Gaudí furniture by BD Barcelona

Gaudí’s original designs were intended for two of his most notable projects in Barcelona: Casa Calvet, which was constructed between 1898 and 1899, and Casa Batlló, which was completed in 1906 (and recently opened a new art space).

Casa Calvet was Gaudí’s first residential project, and received a Best Building award from Barcelona City Council in 1900. Two years later, Gaudí designed the oak furniture for the ground-floor offices.

Unesco World Heritage Site Casa Batlló, on the city’s Passeig de Gràcia, was Gaudí's renovation of an urban house into one of the city’s most notable buildings, and he also designed a set of furniture for its dining room.

Both buildings acted as a canvas for the architect to create furniture that was dynamic, elegant and functional, while echoing the interior architecture.

The pieces sit between the baroque and the surreal, and comprise a range of seats and benches, a coat hanger and a mirror. They are an embodiment of Gaudí’s architecture: full of movement, with oak surfaces and chair legs twisting and entangling to evoke the shape of a tree and its branches. Each piece is unusual, rooting itself in the architect’s connection to nature.

Each reissue in the BD Barcelona ‘Gaudí’ collection comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by the director of the Sagrada Família, Gaudí’s most famous work. The original furniture designs, meanwhile, are currently preserved at the Gaudí Museum in Park Güell.

bdbarcelona.com

Minimalist moves and industrial prefabrication meet in a Spanish house, Casa Guadalupe, designed in Gijón, Asturias, by architecture studio Hanghar. The project, explain its architects, led by practice founder Eduardo Mediero, is conceived as a ‘contemporary form of housing grounded in industrialised construction'. It was carefully crafted to blend 21st-century building methods, sustainable architecture and a deep connection to its surrounding landscape.

Tour new Spanish house Casa Guadalupe by Hanghar

Casa Guadalupe is set in an environment that feels more rural than urban, the architects elaborate. As a result, the design sought to follow the terrain's lines and open up to the long natural vistas afforded by its privileged, high position. In this context, adopting a minimalist attitude felt fitting, setting the house in gentle juxtaposition with – but not imposing upon – the rich surroundings.

At the same time, it was important for the architects to compose an architectural vocabulary for the home that felt restrained and methodical. This allowed them to use modular construction methods in order to have a minimal impact on the land. Indeed, the structure was fully prefabricated in a workshop, its parts simply transported, ready-made, and assembled on site. It comprises a lightweight steel structure, a façade made from sandwich panels, insulation, and a corrugated metal roof.

The prefabrication not only led to minimised earthworks and significantly less disruption to flora and fauna than if conventional foundations and building methods were used, it also meant that the house was erected in a mere 48 hours. The design is able to overcome the site’s slope by being raised on stilts.

The architects say: 'Through [a] technical approach, Casa Guadalupe proposes a different way of understanding prefabricated housing: not as a standardised product, but as a flexible system capable of producing architecture with character, spatial quality, and a precise relationship to its surroundings. The project offers a viable alternative to traditional methods, one that is faster, more controlled, and more easily replicated, aligned with current demands for sustainable, well-built housing.'

Inside, this Spanish house feels fresh and contemporary, bringing a warm minimalism to the fore, framing vistas and allowing the context to take centre stage, while opening up an important discussion about the impact of 21st-century construction.

hanghar.com

Casa Batlló, Antoni Gaudí’s inventive art nouveau house in Barcelona, has opened a new contemporary art gallery to coincide with the centenary of the iconic Catalan architect’s death – and the Unesco-UIA designation of Barcelona as the World Capital of Architecture 2026.

The 230 sq m exhibition space, Casa Batlló Contemporary, is designed by emerging local architecture and design studio Mesura. It is located on the building’s second floor, within rooms previously inaccessible to the public.

Step inside the new Casa Batlló Contemporary

Designed by Gaudí between 1904 and 1906 as a remodel of an 1877 building, Casa Batlló is a Unesco World Heritage Site and one of Barcelona’s biggest tourist destinations, having opened for public tours in 2002. It is remarkable for its organic, flowing, and decorative architecture, known as ‘modernisme’ – a Catalan version of art nouveau.

Major refurbishments of the building took place in the 1970s and 1990s, but Gaudí’s unique vision has remained throughout the years, with preservation and restoration efforts ongoing.

The new gallery occupies space historically used as residential apartments and later as a conservation and maintenance workshop. Now, it is a place for the public to engage with contemporary art in a storied architectural landmark. The space will host two exhibitions per year, each seeking to explore Gaudí’s vision through new thinking and creativity.

Maria Bernat, director of Casa Batlló Contemporary, explains that the project ‘required an intervention that could engage the present while respecting the building’s legacy’. She believes Mesura’s design honours Gaudí’s spirit of experimentation, craftsmanship and material innovation while having its own ‘distinct character’.

Mesura was careful to balance the desire for creative contemporary architecture with the need for historic sensitivity. ‘Our approach was not about adding, but about listening,’ explains Carlos Dimas, partner at Mesura. ‘We understood the project as a dialogue with Gaudí’s work rather than an imposition upon it.’ The team embraced Gaudí’s guiding philosophy of architecture as a living organism, deeply connected to nature.

The primary gesture in the space is a rippling, metallic ceiling, inspired by a drop of water falling onto a calm surface. It references the Mediterranean Sea that Barcelona faces, and is reflective of the wavy lines so central to Gaudí’s nature-inspired geometry. Metal was chosen for the way it reflects light and evokes water, behaving ‘almost like a liquid surface, constantly changing’, says Dimas.

To create the ceiling, Mesura collaborated with Oxido Studio – a local specialist in engineering, craftsmanship and digital production. Together, they adapted an industrial process commonly used in the automotive sector, impulsion-based metal-forming, using a robotic arm to mould 1.2mm-thick aluminium sheets into undulating shapes based on the form of concentric ripples.

The topography also strengthens the lightweight material: ‘On their own, the metal sheets would lack rigidity,’ says Dimas. ‘But by introducing this rippled, three-dimensional geometry, the surface gains structural strength. The curvature and relief stiffen the metal, allowing the ceiling to support itself without heavy secondary frameworks.’

The other new element in the space is a floor made from microcement, which when completed in May 2026 will be green, picking up on hues in the mosaic-covered façade and deepening the connection to nature. Its smooth, calm surface is designed as a counterpoint to the dynamic ceiling above.

Mesura collaborated with the Casa Batlló team to research the house and its architecture – including Gaudí’s use of materials and colour. The in-house restoration team, led by architect Xavier Villanueva, carefully recovered and restored original elements of the space, including woodwork and windows.

Intervening in Gaudí’s masterpiece was ‘both a privilege and a responsibility’, says Dimas. ‘Gaudí is not only a reference within our profession; he is a cultural figure who transcends architecture and forms part of our collective identity [in Barcelona]. His work has shaped the soul and imagination of the city.’

Casa Batlló ‘carries an extraordinary historical and symbolic weight’, he adds, ‘and working within it requires an understanding that the building itself must always remain the protagonist’.

The refinement of Mesura’s architectural intervention reflects this thinking, but was also intended to leave space for the exhibition works to communicate with the public. The gallery’s inaugural show is ‘Beyond the Façade’ (31 January – 17 May 2026) by London-based Matt Clark, founder of United Visual Artists; it brings together light studies, projections and kinetic sculpture.

The exhibition expands upon an audiovisual projection-mapping artwork that Clark has produced for the building’s façade, Hidden Order (being shown on 31 January and 1 February). Continuing a series of artistic façade mappings bringing Casa Batlló’s exterior to life for the public, this projected work explores the idea of the mysterious order within nature that influenced Gaudí; a deep logic beneath the chaos.

mesura.eu

casabatllo.es

A Barcelona apartment set in the vibrant Mediterranean city's heart, overlooking the Collserola Natural Park, Capitán House transforms 108 square meters into an inventive study of geometry, light, and colour. The project is the work of Septiembre Arquitectura, a studio known for precise, poetic interventions that balance simplicity with surprise and a strong sense of material clarity.

Inside a Barcelona apartment built around geometry and flow

Here, the architects – Damián Figueras, Patricia Parra, and Germán Ribera – took a deceptively simple approach: establishing a central 'square' anchored by a circular island, a move that organises the apartment’s setbacks and defines its main social spaces. 'It focuses on the sequence of experiences that unfold as you move from the central square into the rest of the apartment,' says Figueras. Variations in ceiling height and colour gradually reveal distinct atmospheres, reinforcing the idea of movement and transition.

The 'square' is articulated through a continuous band of stained birch built-ins, which both structures the plan and frames daily life. At 2.2 meters, a perimeter shelf runs uninterrupted, functioning as a bookshelf that encloses the space. Below that datum, the band shifts programmatically, forming kitchen cabinetry, a dining and living bench, and storage. This birch envelope also encourages discovery: when panels are opened, a vivid red interior emerges. Pantry, cabinetry, and a central corridor are saturated in this colour, leading to three bedrooms along diagonal sightlines that visually connect spaces in unexpected ways and lend a sense of depth to the compact plan.

The narrative continues in the bathrooms, where microcement floors and lower walls provide a tactile, grounding element, while tiles in greens and pinks wrap upper surfaces and ceilings. Mirrors and carefully placed lighting animate these materials, producing subtle shifts that change throughout the day. Each room becomes a small, immersive experience that reveals layers of hues, form, and light.

The material palette reinforces the balance between bold gestures and quiet elegance. Natural walnut flooring, custom birch furniture, and white Macael marble countertops offer warmth and restraint, grounding the more dramatic chromatic moments. 'As the doors are gradually opened, new colours and materials are revealed, creating the feeling of inhabiting different places within the same home,' notes Parra.

'The layout revolves around a large, calm square that becomes the social heart. Around it, supporting functions act as a bridge between the ideal and the real,' adds Ribera. More than an apartment, Capitán House becomes a compact canvas for a joyful everyday lived experience.

septiembrearquitectura.com

‘Casa Óculo was inspired by a blend of Mediterranean vernacular architecture, a strong interest in sensory experience, and a fascination with the passage of time,’ say the architects and co-founders of OHLAB, Paloma Hernaiz and Jaime Oliver. The Spanish studio is reflecting on its recent project, a single-family Mallorcan house located in a residential neighbourhood on the outskirts of Palma – where the practice is also based.

Inside Casa Óculo, a Mallorcan house redefining island living

The project is defined by its large flat roof, which stretches east to west and seamlessly blends into the horizon. It is a simple, yet bold architectural gesture, under which spaces are rhythmically delineated by thick, lime-rendered walls.

‘Time plays a key role in the house – not only in the daily movement of sunlight through the oculus, which marks the hours like a domestic sundial, but also in a slower, subtler way: through the materials themselves,’ say Hernaiz and Oliver.

‘The lime mortar walls are alive – they age, breathe, and slowly develop a patina that adds depth and texture over time. This idea of architecture that improves with age and connects to natural rhythms was central to our concept.’

Paradoxically, the simplicity of the geometry proved to be one of the architects’ greatest challenges within the project. They explain: ‘Achieving that clarity required extreme precision – from cutting the oculus into the roof to aligning and proportioning the load-bearing walls, and integrating natural materials like stone, wood, and brass in a way that felt effortless.’

The team selected materials that would weather beautifully over time. Their goal was to ultimately develop the right texture and tone for their lime mortars. The material palette also includes stone floors, wooden carpentry and natural brass details.

A vibrant Mediterranean garden complements the architecture and was viewed as an additional material in the project. This outdoor space merges effortlessly with the surrounding context and extends the character of the nearby mountains into the living spaces.

‘We hope [residents] feel a sense of calm, protection, and softness,’ Hernaiz and Oliver tell Wallpaper*. ‘The house is meant to be both introspective and open – it offers privacy and enclosure, but always remains connected to the sky and the landscape.

'The sunlight entering through the oculus brings a quiet rhythm to the spaces, marking the day in a gentle and ever-changing way. The oculus creates an emotional and poetic connection to time. It’s a reminder of nature’s cycles and how architecture can quietly frame and celebrate them.’

ohlab.net

Meliá Collection debuts on the Iberian Peninsula with Casa de las Artes (meaning ‘house of the arts’ in Spanish): a Madrid hotel that doesn’t take its surroundings or history for granted. Drawing on the boutique sensibility that defines this Meliá division, yet executed with the confidence of a venerable hospitality group, the property positions culture at its core. The standout? An ambitious programme of live music, cinema, dance, literary events and culinary experiences that celebrates the seven fine arts – and makes guests, quite simply, feel en casa.

Wallpaper* checks in at Casa de Las Artes, Madrid

What’s on your doorstep?

Casa de las Artes enjoys dual access, with a main entrance on Atocha Street and a secondary entrance on the parallel Moratín Street, which also offers a shortcut to the Museo del Prado. It is a privileged location, situated within the Spanish capital’s so-called ‘Art Triangle’. As such, both the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and the Reina Sofía Museum are within walking distance.

The hotel also sits within the Barrio de las Letras, next to the Cervantes Society building, where the first edition of Don Quixote de la Mancha and other masterpieces of Spain’s Golden Age were printed. Few places in the world can claim such a literary heritage. A personal favourite is neighbouring Santa Isabel Street, home to the art-deco Cine Doré and a lively glut of tabernas, bakeries, cafés and bookshops.

Who is behind the design?

ASAH Studio, led by father-and-daughter duo Álvaro and Adriana Sans, spearheaded the transformation of the property. Casa de las Artes spans four heritage-protected buildings, anchored by a palatial main block designed by Ricardo García Guereta and José María Otamendi and built in 1913. The building originally housed the headquarters of the General Association of Employees and Workers of the Railways of Spain, a meaningful institution in Madrid’s social and industrial history.

‘The design process began with extensive research into the area’s architecture, museum collections, and the artists who have shaped the neighbourhood’s identity, ensuring that every material choice was rooted in context rather than purely decorative,’ explains Adriana Sans. The palatial public interiors lean into terracotta tones that set off the original mouldings and coffered ceilings. A museum-adjacent warmth runs through the hotel, punctuated by green and red velvet upholstery in the common areas.

Furnishings from brands such as Andreu World, Sancal, Pedrali, Kettal and Santa & Cole (among others) were selected for their timelessness and their affinity with the building’s architectural language. ASAH Studio also customised many pieces – and designed others specifically for the hotel – using walnut, Marquina marble, brass and dramatic velvet across public spaces and rooms.

To strengthen the hotel’s connection to the place, the team paid particular attention to the art programme. In the reception area, original Don Quixote lithographs by Salvador Dalí (from the 1957 Joseph Foret edition) are displayed. Sculpture is integrated throughout, too. ‘One of the most emblematic examples is the collection of miniature meninas [infant girls] by Spanish sculptor Miguel Guía, displayed at reception,’ notes Sans.

The room to book

Guest rooms are more pared back than the public areas: compact but luminous, with views of Atocha (city view), Calle de Moratín (street view) or the internal courtyard. There are 137 keys in total; while the entry categories are efficient in size, the suites make longer stays genuinely comfortable. Book the Artist Junior Suite with Terrace for warm evenings outdoors and the sharpest detailing.

Across the rooms, walnut and black-and-white Marquina marble form the core palette: warming and enveloping. Bathrooms are visually integrated into the sleeping space but can be screened off with velvet curtains. As a tribute to Miguel de Cervantes and the Cervantine tradition of the neighbourhood, each room includes a Don Quixote engraving by Gustave Doré from the 1869 edition. Rooms come with Carner Barcelona toiletries, plus tea and coffee amenities.

Staying for drinks and dinner?

One of Casa de las Artes’ standout spaces is the former theatre, now reimagined as a restaurant, bar and multi-purpose venue on the first floor. ‘Its transformation perfectly encapsulates the project’s philosophy: respecting the memory of the place while giving it contemporary life,’ says Sans. The all-day hub is called Maché (a nod to papier-mâché), and the atmosphere leans theatrical, like a modern swing salon. Among the most distinctive features are the stained-glass windows by the Maumejean Brothers workshop.

Plush velvet banquettes, marble floors and gilded accents play against cascading ceiling lamps. A long, wood-clad bar serves cocktails inspired by the seven arts – from a smoky Music riff to a more bitter, elegant Dance variation. Above the old stage machinery, an adjoining patio sits beneath a glass roof like a greenhouse, hosting live music and occasional sessions. The food is Mediterranean-leaning Spanish classics with a sharper edge: think cod brandade fritters with romesco, or glazed beef-cheek meatballs with Robuchon-style mash.

Where to switch off

Wellness buffs will head straight to the indoor pool, sauna and steam room, or the gym (with dance studio). Elsewhere, a handsome library and cultural centre deepen the hotel’s creative brief: architect and painter Ángel Vázquez was commissioned to produce 16 portraits of Spanish-language writers connected to Madrid, many tied to Barrio de las Letras. Guests can borrow from an extensive collection of volumes, and there’s also a small cinema (named after Pilar Miró) with daily screenings available on request.

The verdict

As Adriana Sans puts it, ‘Casa de las Artes is not a hotel that merely displays art, but a space where art is practised, shared, and celebrated’ through live music, cinema, dance, literary events and food-led programming. It’s a well-balanced property where the common spaces genuinely come alive in the evenings. Service feels human and attentive. It’s not ultra-luxe in the white-glove sense, but it is luxurious in how thoughtfully it builds a cultural world around the guest experience.

Casa de Las Artes, a member of Meliá Collection, is located at C. de Atocha, 83, Centro, 28012 Madrid, Spain

Freediving in Dahab

Tianna Williams, staff writer

Back in November, I jumped on a jet for a spontaneous trip to Egypt, specifically the very bohemian town of Dahab, to see an old friend. The trip revolved around diving – freediving specifically – as the area is known for its water sinkhole, the ‘Blue Hole’, which is over 100 metres deep and perhaps the world's most dangerous dive site, hence its nickname the ‘Diver's Cemetery’. It filled my heart to see such a healthy reef in a world where this is now a rare find. The trip began with a quick visit to a small art festival run by local freedivers in the area, who showcased creative pieces and short films inspired by the sea. The following days were spent exploring the desert and spending most of the time in the Red Sea alongside grazing turtles, shoals of fish and vibrant corals.

A year in architecture

Ellie Stathaki, architecture & environment director

I had too many 'best moments' last year to even try to pick, but any trips I take are always up there for me. Among the places and people I visited were Bas Smets' exhibition in the striking site of LUMA Arles – a true eye-opener for how he approaches landscape architecture and the beginning of endless discussions around our relationship to nature; my first visit to the States in quite a few years, which, among other things, allowed me to attend the summer gala at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in North Adams, MA; and, of course, the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale vernissage – the biggest and busiest festival of its kind in the architecture world and always a highlight. All trips leave me feeling energised and full of excitement for the industry, but these three truly enhanced my world.

Culinary art in Bilbao

Bill Prince, editor-in-chief

My most memorable ‘OOO’ experience last year was also the shortest: a day trip to Bilbao (with a stop at the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim to take in the monumental Richard Serra sculptures there) for lunch at Europe’s best restaurant, Asador Etxebarri. I won’t attempt to relay the bemusement that met my announcement that I could only join my friends' weekend sojourn to the culinary capital of Europe – San Sebastian – for a fleeting appearance at the first part – but they were kind enough to keep me on the manifest, meaning I got to spend a day in the company of true bon vivants, dining on one of the most incredible set menus I’ve ever had the opportunity to experience.

As with new-school haute cuisine of this kind, it’s not about the elevated status of a world-renowned restaurant, or even the environment (spectacular as it is – Google the village if you’ve never been to this part of Spain) – but the experience: a serene yet satisfying ‘in-the-know’ vibe among its patrons that doesn’t countenance pontification or pseudery. Yes, the food was spectacular (I’ll leave it to the critics to pontificate on that part), but the most important ingredient – the memory – remains the taste of tiny, sea-fresh elvers (baby eels) that were served, and the supremely elegant way in which my companions offered their farewells as I stepped away from the table with several once-in-a-lifetime courses to go, and headed back to the airport. More fool me.

Fashion in Tokyo

Sofia de la Cruz, travel editor

When I’m not working as a travel editor, I’m often found supporting my partner’s design studio, Savvas Alexander. In 2025, a trip to Tokyo became the catalyst for a collaboration with Garden Shibuya, a platform for emerging design, culminating in a weekend-long installation and the release of a limited-run reinterpretation of the British duffle coat.

The project brought together the store team, brand supporters and curious passersby interested in process as much as product, which was very exciting to see. We work at the intersection of technology and manufacture, using laser-driven techniques to produce crisp, architectural forms in modern materials. The installation distilled this approach: a miniature laser machine set beside the outerwear number, fabric suspended to throw graphic shadows across the space. We also took the opportunity to shoot with a local group of talent, anchoring the project firmly in its Tokyo context.

The joy of slowing down

Anna Fixsen, US editor

Last year I set a goal for myself: to make time for a hobby. I’ve long enjoyed drawing (I hold a minor in studio art) but, amid high-octane New York living, my skills have gotten, well, rusty. So I signed up for a virtual botanical illustration class through the New York Botanical Garden. I figured, within a couple of sessions, I’d be well on my way to creating colourful renderings of orchids, fungi and seed pods. Not so: under the tutelage of my instructor, Scott Rawlins, we got back to basics, reacquainting ourselves with the fundamental principles of art, like line, shape, value and texture. Each week, we’d layer on a new technique, drawing everything from store-bought pears to, ultimately, a fully-rendered branch. I learned how to look – to really look – an exercise that revealed the mind-boggling amount of detail to be found in a single, delicate leaf vein. I was overjoyed to rediscover my love of drawing – and in the process learn to slow down.

A full circle moment

Anna Solomon, digital staff writer

I visited some fantastic places in 2025, mainly in the States, but one of my most meaningful experiences happened closer to home, in Edinburgh. I went to see an exhibition on Ikea textiles at the Dovecot Gallery and stayed at the lovely The Hoxton hotel, but the trip resonated particularly because I lived in Edinburgh for four years while at university. In the near-decade since graduating, I’ve visited sporadically, but returning in my capacity as a journalist – after having studied English literature here harbouring those very ambitions – felt different.

I spent an afternoon retracing old routes and revisiting favourite haunts – from places I can confidently recommend (Black Medicine Coffee, 10 to 10 in Delhi, Surgeons’ Hall Museum, the Meadows, and the cobbled passageways of Old Town), to the scruffier student spots best left unendorsed – struck by the quiet sense of having come full circle.

The trip of a lifetime

Nick Vinson, contributing editor

Last November, I visited Lebanon for the second time. We spent time in Beirut, visited the mountains in Ghineh to stay at Biet Trad – the most idyllic small guest house – went higher up to the ski zone of Faraya to visit a house that will soon appear in a magazine, journeyed to Baalbek to see the Roman ruins, and dined on the terrace of the fabled Palmyra Hotel.

Back in Beirut, we visited design studios, ate twice at the fabulous Tawlet restaurant, the charming Sô Beirut designed by Ask Deco’s Nisrine Karagula, and Em Sherif au Musée, with the best hummus I have ever tasted (the trick, apparently, is to peel the chickpeas). We shopped at the Souk El Tayeb Farmers’ Market, ate cream and Lokum from Oslo Made in Heaven, went crazy buying kilos of pistachios, walnuts and almonds, visited the Sursock Museum and the National Museum of Beirut, discovered Inaash and their fabulous Palestinian embroideries, and drank white coffee (orange blossom water tea) with couturier Maison Rabih Kayrouz. We also discovered the best reconditioned and restyled Porsche, which will appear shortly in the pages of Wallpaper*.

We are fortunate to have some extremely special Lebanese friends, who created the best schedule possible, welcomed us warmly and fed us homemade Lebanese food. I am overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of the Lebanese people, as well as their resilience. This was a trip of a lifetime – I can’t recommend it more.

In the last 12 months, the most talked-about restaurants weren’t just about what was on the plate. Design took the lead, with new openings using architecture and interiors as part of the experience rather than polite scenery. Across cities and continents, former embassies, fortresses, office blocks and coastal sites were reworked into dining rooms with a clear point of view. The following Wallpaper* edit offers a snapshot of the spaces that redefined restaurant design this year.

The best restaurant design of 2025

Call Me Ten

Tucked within the refined, residential enclave of Vasant Vihar in New Delhi, Call Me Ten emerges as a 6,000 sq ft Japanese restaurant and bar. Designed by Renesa Architecture Design Interiors, the site is defined by a materially restrained but expressive language. Natural limestone plaster and stone aggregates anchor the space, while soft curves and muted tones create an interior that feels both serene and theatrical. Subtle nods to Japanese aesthetics run throughout, from Shoji-inspired partitions that diffuse light with gentle translucency to a layout informed by tatami logic, encouraging intimacy and order. Polished concrete floors lend contemporary clarity, offset by pockets of deep-toned, hand-crafted mosaic tiles. Complementing the design, the menu reinterprets Japanese tradition through a modern izakaya lens, pairing dishes such as miso black cod and pork belly with inventive, Asian-inflected cocktails.

Call Me Ten is located at 58, Market, Basant Lok, Vasant Vihar, New Delhi, Delhi 110057, India

Read our full review of Call Me Ten

Carbone London

Once Eero Saarinen’s modernist vision of American diplomacy, the former US Embassy reopened this year as The Chancery Rosewood. Appropriately, the Grade II-listed building now hosts Carbone, one of America’s most beloved restaurants, marking the brand’s first European outpost. Originating in New York’s Greenwich Village, Carbone is as renowned for its Italian-American classics as its A-list following. In London, designer Ken Fulk channels Rat Pack-era glamour across a two-level space rich in theatrical flourish: Carbone-blue panelling, hand-painted murals, burgundy velvet banquettes and marble mosaics set the scene. MoMA-calibre artworks, live music and an indulgent, ‘a piacere’, or ‘as you like it’ culinary approach complete an experience rooted in spectacle.

Carbone London is located at 30 Grosvenor Sq, London W1K 2LG, UK

Read our full review of Carbone London

Cento Raw Bar

Michelin-recognised Cento Pasta Bar has long been one of West Adams’ most elusive reservations; now, its sibling Cento Raw Bar opens next door, offering Angelenos a second, distinctly different experience from chef and co-owner Avner Levi. Designed by Brandon Miradi, also behind Somni, the space is defined by thickly plastered walls and ceilings, brushed into undulating waves that lend a quietly surreal, oceanic rhythm. The motif continues in curved ceilings, minimal metal barstools and custom tableware, while sculptural light fittings by Ukrainian studio ClayP add tactility overhead. At the centre, scallop-shaped seafood towers piled high with oysters, shrimp and lobster set the tone, alongside jewel-toned cocktails. Dessert leans playful, with mosaic cheesecake and a nostalgic chocolate cake finale.

Cento Raw Bar is located at 4919 W Adams Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016, United States

Read our full review of Cento Raw Bar

Dévo Marseille

Designer Axel Chay’s totemic tubular steel forms have long embodied Marseille’s creative pulse; now, he and his wife Mélissa channel that energy into Dévo, a new restaurant and wine bar in the Préfecture neighbourhood. Named after the American new-wave band, it marks the duo’s first fully designed and art-directed space. Cocooning yet animated, the interior pairs contemporary lines with vintage patina: lime satin curtains sweep across concrete floors, offsetting a zinc bar and steel stools inspired by Italian cafés and Spanish vermuterias. Cinematic details abound: mirrored artworks by Aurélien Ciller, plaster seagulls in flight and bespoke lighting by Axel’s brother Aimeric. In the kitchen, chef Ferdinand Fravega serves relaxed Provençal dishes, paired with a 100-strong list of independent and natural wines.

Dévo Marseille is located at 22 Bd Paul Peytral, 13006 Marseille, France

Read our full review of Dévo Marseille

Elmina

In Washington DC, Elmina is the debut bricks-and-mortar venture of Ghanaian-American chef Eric Adjepong: a restaurant that celebrates modern Africa while acknowledging the complexities of its past. Its name carries weight, referencing the port that became the site of sub-Saharan Africa’s first European slave-trading post. Dreamt up by local studio Drummond Projects, the 3,720 sq ft, three-storey space reads as a fluid, immersive journey, with each space defined by material and colour references, unified by a sculptural curving stairwell and enriched with bespoke artworks, artisan textiles and warm, tactile finishes throughout. The food itself is deeply rooted in tradition, a love letter to Adjepong’s ancestors and recipes he grew up with. Experiences on offer span a five-course tasting menu, a chop bar selection and a hearty brunch, with standout dishes including the comfortingly smoky jollof duck pot.

Elmina is located at 2208 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20009, United States

Read our full review of Elmina

Restaurant Esperit Roca

Set within a 19th-century fortress on the hills outside Girona, Esperit Roca evokes the beauty of raw materials with a rugged yet refined touch. Part of a remote gastronomic complex by the Roca brothers, which also houses a 16-bedroom hotel, the restaurant overlooks the mountains, woodland and sea of northern Catalonia. Designed by Girona-based Andreu Carulla, the interiors are pared-back and elemental, shaped from stone, concrete and wood in muted greys and greens. Locally quarried piedra de Girona limestone forms sculptural counters, lamps and monolithic sinks, echoing the fortress itself. Midcentury-inspired furniture, agricultural textiles and pockets of greenery reinforce the connection to place. In the kitchen, Joan and Jordi Roca deliver concept-driven tasting menus that reinterpret local produce with rigour, poetry and surprise. Don’t miss the tasting menu that offers two main courses and six desserts.

Restaurant Esperit Roca is located at Carrer Major, Entrada 1, 17481 Sant Julià de Ramis, Girona, Spain

Read our full review of Restaurant Esperit Roca

Finlandia Bistro

Alvar Aalto’s modernist landmark, Finlandia Hall, now houses a new restaurant that allows guests to dine in surroundings that gently echo the architect’s enduring design language. In contrast to the hall’s light, open spaces, the bistro is warmly cocooned in deeper tones, soft fabrics and tactile textures. Designed by Fyra, the interior blends Finnish modernist classics with contemporary pieces from Finnish Design Shop, alongside bespoke built-ins. Deep blue curtains recall Finlandia Hall’s cobalt accents, while wood and brass details nod to Aalto’s modernism. Led by head chef Mikko Puuronen, the 64-seat restaurant serves Nordic-inspired dishes with subtle Mediterranean inflexions.

Finlandia Bistro is located at Mannerheimintie 13e, 00100 Helsinki, Finland

Read our full review of Finlandia Bistro

Jncquoi Fish

‘Where food meets fashion meets hospitality’ underpins Jncquoi, the Lisbon lifestyle hub launched in 2017 by Paula Amorim and Miguel Guedes de Sousa of the Amorim Luxury Group. While the brand’s first hotel, Jncquoi House (designed by Vincent Van Duysen), will open in 2026, its newest restaurant, Jncquoi Fish, already signals the next chapter. Beneath a neo-Moorish façade, the space unfolds in Van Duysen’s restrained language of marble, limestone and ceramics, with dark clay floors by Viúva Lamego and bespoke furnishings and lighting made in Portugal. Tables cluster around the open kitchen, where chefs António Bóia and Filipe Carvalho celebrate Atlantic seafood through refined Portuguese flavours, from caviar-topped cod fritters to blue lobster rice, complemented by an astute, terroir-driven wine programme and assured, indulgent desserts.

Jncquoi Fish is located at Av. da Liberdade 189 1, 1250-096 Lisboa, Portugal

Read our full review of Jncquoi Fish

Milló

On the ground floor of the ADNBA-designed Millo Offices in Bucharest’s business area, Milló explores how contemporary design can converse with history. Responding to the building’s art deco undertones, local studio AÉ02 shaped an interior defined by light, texture and material warmth. At its centre hangs a dramatic ‘volcano of light’: an illuminated feature suspended above the main dining table, shifting in tone throughout the day. LED strips trace the ceiling edges, sharpening geometry through light and shadow, while the bar counter pairs stainless steel with cherry Levanto marble, concealing a discreet DJ booth. The Mediterranean-leaning menu – think baked artichoke, saffron risotto and miso-marinated cod – completes the experience, encouraging guests to linger from midday through to midnight.

Milló is located at Strada Ion Câmpineanu 19, Bucharest 030167, Romania.

Read our full review of Milló

Rubra

Hotel restaurants rarely transcend the orbit of the properties they inhabit, but on the northern edge of Banderas Bay, Rubra decisively breaks that pattern. Part of W Punta de Mita, the restaurant is led by Daniela Soto-Innes, who was named World’s Best Female Chef in 2019. At just 28, she was the youngest chef to earn the accolade. Designed by Ignacio Urquiza with interiors by Ana Paula de Alba, Rubra takes the form of a sand-toned concrete monolith, its restrained architecture softened by creeping greenery and expansive views towards the Sierra Madre. A pergola of wooden lattices filters light across an open, fluid dining room, blurring indoors and out. Soto-Innes’ ‘tropical cooking’ draws from seasonal produce, much of it grown on site, shaping menus that favour citrus, herbs and vivid coastal flavours, from scallops dressed in kombu aguachile to flower-crowned tuna tostadas.

Rubra is located at Carr. Federal la Cruz de Huanacaxtle - Punta de Mita Km 8.5, Desarrollo Costa, 63734 Corral del Risco, Nay., Mexico

Read our full review of Rubra

At Wallpaper*, movement is second nature, and savouring it is an art. Whether on assignment or off-duty, our editorial team is perpetually combing the globe, visiting places that are mind-expanding and spirit-lifting. This year, we paused to gather the places that truly stayed with us. Consider this selection of travel highlights, handpicked by our staff, as a starting point for the year ahead, compiled to spark curiosity and fuel your future travel plans.

As such, follow the sun to Mexico, Greece, Spain and Italy, or embrace the stark beauty of Finland and Iceland. Looking for adventure? Uzbekistan, Egypt and Kenya deliver. For a spiritual reset, Japan and South Korea offer ritual and depth. From European mainstays such as Vienna and Lisbon to American icons including Miami and Joshua Tree, let’s get globetrotting.

Amanohashidate, Japan

‘Last April, adding a few days to a long-haul work trip felt like the responsible thing to do, particularly when long-haul now extends to a 16-hour dog-leg to Osaka via Doha, which is how I came to visit one of Japan’s most revered destinations, Amanohashidate, site of a 3.6km sidebar known as ‘the staircase to heaven’ that cuts across Miayazu Bay in Kyoto prefecture. Amanohashidate itself is a quiet village with a national landmark at its heart and a well-run ryokan (Monjusou) to relax in, but the surrounding area is blessed with no less significant points of interest. Ine is a ‘floating village’ of 230 fishing cottages, protected as a heritage site, that offers good walking with splendid sea views and great coffee in one of its repurposed properties. Sometimes all you need is sea air, the odd stroll and the chance to indulge in something as silly as matanozoki, or peering between your legs atop Kasamatsu Park, at which point the now-inverted sandbar appears as a bridge across the sky.’

– Bill Prince, editor-in-chief

Athens, Greece

‘This past autumn, I celebrated a milestone birthday in Athens. The city feels as though it was shaped by accumulation rather than careful urban planning, its layers of typeface, texture and attitude stacked across eras, politics and glitzy inconsistencies. Visually, Athens is unrelenting: everything speaks loudly and constantly, and nothing is treated as too precious. Even the Acropolis feels unresolved, its original fragments scattered between the exquisitely built Acropolis Museum and far beyond Greece’s borders. I enjoyed long lunches with generous pours of Assyrtiko from aluminium jugs, and late nights drifting into hot spots like SMUT, where Athens’ spontaneity really kicks in. I chose Athens as my favourite of the year because it thrives in chaos, offering moments of beauty and excitement, and rewarding those who stay longer, pay attention and arrive hungry.’

– Gabriel Annouka, senior designer

Brittany, France

‘On something of a nostalgia trip to the south coast of Brittany, France – the destination of my first-ever trip abroad – now with my own teenagers in tow, I was relieved to find it a still-lovely, laidback and low-key escape with none of the hussle or hassle a beach break during the summer holidays can entail. The sea was utterly clear – too freezing for me, even in July, for more than one cold plunge, but perfect for kayaking or admiring endlessly from coastal walking paths. Bike hire in this cycling-obsessed nation was ubiquitous and the paths plentiful and well sign-posted; they even continued across estuaries, courtesy of short ferry hops on which bikes were not just bienvenue but (bafflingly for a Brit used to transport-network shortfalls) positively encouraged. And a day’s hire extended through to the evening, allowing ample time for a thoroughly civilised French lunch break en route with (savoury) galettes and (sweet) crêpes galore. Pancakes for all courses is a concept close to my heart.’

– Bridget Downing, executive editor

Cairo, Egypt

‘In November, I visited Cairo and spent a few warm, autumnal days watching the light shift over the Art D’Égypte installations, set in the sand beneath the pyramids of Giza. I was particularly drawn to SolidNature and Studio PROBA’s organically shaped, naturally coloured stone sculptures. Seeing them positioned against the pyramids was both wondrous and surreal: two forms of stone, prehistoric in material yet composed millennia apart, held in quiet dialogue with one another. The experience was utterly mesmerising, leaving me feeling incredibly small in the face of such magnificence and scale. Other highlights across the city included losing track of time in the newly opened Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) and wandering through the calming gardens of Adam Henein’s gallery house.’

– Olly Mason, head of interiors

Évora, Portugal

‘When my sister moved to Lisbon in 2024, I dreamily imagined endless weekends of wandering, but life got in the way and it never quite happened; until this summer, when we managed to bring both our families together for ten scorching days in Alentejo, a more off-the-beaten-path part of Portugal, around 90 minutes east of Lisbon. We stayed in gloriously serene countryside, awash with olive groves and vineyards, occasionally popping into the medieval, walled UNESCO city of Évora for ice cream (Pezagno, delicious!). On one visit, we explored the Capela dos Ossos (Chapel of Bones), a 16th-century chapel within the Church of St Francis, built by Franciscan monks as a memento mori to inspire reflection on the transience of life. Its walls and columns are clad with thousands of strikingly arranged human skulls and bones, previously buried in Évora’s medieval cemeteries. Above the door, an inscription reads: “We bones are here, waiting for yours.” At the entrance to this macabre chapel is a simple modern mural by Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira – a counterpoint to its meditation on mortality.’

– Anne Soward, production editor

Helsinki, Finland

‘While others escaped to hotter climes, last February, I decided to embrace the cold and wintry feel of Europe and headed further north, to Helsinki. It was one of the best travel decisions I ever made. The day was short, but the city was fun, and the cultural offerings were plentiful and welcoming. Helsinki was frozen – not that you would be bothered with the right clothes and shoes, especially in the city centre, where pavements are heated so that the snow doesn’t build up. A short ferry ride, breaking through the icy waters, took me to the magical Suomenlinna sea fortress - thank you, Laura Iloniemi, for the tip! I also explored the numerous art offerings the city has to offer, from the Amos Rex museum to the Temppeliaukio church of the rock. I stayed at a timber-framed hotel by the water, Solo Sokos Pier 4, paid a visit to the renovated Finlandia Hall, and enjoyed sticky Korvapuusti (Finnish cinnamon rolls) and warm and creamy salmon soup. As travel reviews often conclude, “would definitely recommend.”’

– Ellie Stathaki, architecture and environment director

Hydra, Greece

‘This year I’ve been lucky to visit great European capitals including Vienna, Paris and Athens, but somehow it’s my day on the small Greek island of Hydra that was most memorable. Big cities are filled with great things to do and see, but Hydra offers an escape from it all, with no cars, no museums, and practically no phone reception. And yet it still has everything you might possibly need on a nice autumn day: a lunch at a taverna followed by a dip in the sea, and a walk along the coastal path, suspended between the blue sky and the Mediterranean.’

– Léa Teuscher, sub-editor

Joshua Tree, USA

‘In May, I made the three-hour journey from Los Angeles into the Mojave Desert to Joshua Tree. It had long been on my list to visit, likely prompted by endless interviews with musicians who enthused about the desert’s mystical energy. There are no shortage of incredible architectural stays to book in the area, but after much deliberation, I settled on this geodesic dome, far enough away from civilisation to get the full experience (the drive back from dinner in the pitch black was a little hairy) but just twenty minutes from Joshua Tree National Park and the must-sees of the Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms. I loved every single thing about this trip. From the weird roadside stops along the route – a desert crochet museum? A shrine to fifties hairdressing? A park filled with many, many statues of Christ? – to dinner at The Copper Room, drinks at Mas o Menos and obligatory live music at Pioneertown institution, Pappy & Harriet’s (the nearby Red Dog Saloon was a little quieter when Pappy’s is packed). I can’t wait to return.’

– Charlotte Gunn, director of digital content

Kyoto, Japan

‘I loved visiting Kyoto this year, and discovering its rich history, gorgeous food and beautiful surroundings. The highlight, though, was being able to get to know some of the locals, who were as generous with their time as they are cultured, intelligent, and extremely kind.’

– Hannah Silver, art, culture, watches and jewellery editor

Lake Como, Italy

‘Until last year, I had never been to Italy; now, I can say I’ve been three times. A run of good fortune took me to Milan for Salone de Mobile, and Venice for an immersive exhibition hosted by Golden Goose. In addition, to mark the beginning of the summer season, I was invited to Lake Como to stay at Il Sereno’s new listening suite, designed by Patricia Urquiola. The lake in the foothills of the Alps took my breath away. It was scenery I had not seen before, and I was captivated by its beauty. There was an effortless air of Old Hollywood glamour and relaxed sophistication coupled with the calming nature of the lake, which makes the location entirely unique. I cannot wait to go back.’

– Tianna Williams, staff writer

Menorca, Spain

‘The Menorca Experimental hotel had been on my bucket list for years, and I finally made it there for a short break in September. Designed by Dorothée Meilichzon, the interiors strike a balance between playful colour and subtle Art Deco references, incorporating local designers and materials. It felt considered yet relaxed. The weather was still warm enough for sea swims in some of the clearest water I’ve seen in Europe, and it was easy to find quieter spots that felt untouched. There’s a quiet, understated rhythm to the island that encourages you to slow down, making it a perfect mid-season reset.’

– Cindy Parthonnaud, acting photography editor

Mérida, Mexico

‘I spent 10 days in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula this summer and enjoyed soaking up Mérida’s rich history, intense summer heat and xtabentún, the local firewater. The city is about 30 miles inland, meaning those craving a swim-up bar or large beach resort won’t find it here. Instead, they’ll discover a mix of unhurried streets, bustling markets, pretty boutiques and innovative cuisine that spotlights traditional Yucatec cooking. My husband and I checked in at Hotel Cigno, an elegant boutique property located in Mérida’s historic heart, before hiring a local guide to take us to Uxmal, one of the Mayan world’s most important sites, and an azure blue cenote, a naturally occurring limestone sinkhole that peppers the area. There was still an opportunity to hit the beach, though: an hour-ride taxi will take you straight to the coast, where you can take in tranquil waters, white sand beaches, bright-pink salt lakes and – my favourite – droves of flamingos.’

– Anna Fixsen, U.S. editor

Miami, USA

‘I came to Miami for the Grand Prix – where Lego had built ten fully drivable cars – but stayed for the art deco architecture, palm-lined boulevards and viscerally cinematic sunsets. Miami’s expansion in the 1920s and 30s left it with a remarkable concentration of art deco buildings, which I completely fell in love with. A stroll down Ocean Drive – one of the finest showcases of the style – took me hours, slowed by pastel façades and kitsch vintage cars that demanded to be photographed. Little Havana, shaped by Cuban émigrés after the 1959 revolution, is home to cigar shops, graffiti tributes to Celia Cruz and Old’s Havana Cuban Bar & Cocina, which, with its yellow walls and mojito production line, is an institution. So, too, is Delilah – swathed in pink velvet and favoured by A-listers – though in an entirely different vein. Miami is a place I’d return to in a heartbeat.’

– Anna Solomon, digital writer

Nesjavellir, Iceland

‘My yearly travel mainly comprises the movement between Milan, Paris and New York for fashion week (and the freneticism and overstimulation these trips bring), so when I’m not working I seem to be attracted towards the vast and the desolate – Lanzarote has become my go-to escape, and this spring I loved losing myself in its strange, moonlike landscapes once again. Though it was another otherworldly (and volcanic) island that was my favourite trip of 2025: Iceland, which I visited with 66 North last month (the outerwear brand was founded on the island a century ago). I have been a couple of times before, though each time it is surprising in its vastness and scale: speeding across the snow-covered mountain ridge Thórsmörk – named after the Norse god Thor – on off-roading buggies was a truly cinematic experience (and the perfect release). We spent the second night at the Ion Adventure Hotel, a Brutalist box on stilts that looks out over the geothermal fields of Nesjavellir – in the silence, it was my best night’s sleep of the year.’

– Jack Moss, fashion and beauty features director

Seoul, South Korea

‘About two hours from Seoul, in the mountains of Wonju, Museum SAN (Space Art Nature) heralds an architectural feat by Tadao Ando: a 25-metre-wide subterranean dome beneath the museum’s flower garden, topped with an oculus rising more than seven metres high. Titled Ground, it was commissioned to accompany Antony Gormley’s exhibition Drawing on Space.’

– Jason Hughes, creative director

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

‘I spend much of my year bouncing around beautiful design-led hotels. But at least once a year, I make it my mission to step out of this bubble as a reminder of why I love to travel in the first place. And this year, my trip to Uzbekistan was a welcome reset. It’s not a destination known for luxury, but with tourism on the rise, you can feel the energy in Tashkent’s creative pockets and across Samarkand and Bukhara, which just hosted its inaugural biennale. From the staggering detail of the Islamic architecture to the small, genuinely local boutique hotels, there’s an incredible history and a rawness that was not just compelling, but a reminder that stepping away from the familiar is not just refreshing, but important to keep your curiosity alive.’

– Lauren Ho, travel director

Tokyo, Japan

‘Tokyo had been calling for some time, and this October I was finally able to answer. Japan’s capital is an urban sprawl of ritual, contrast, beauty and tradition, where even the smallest details feel deliberate and meaningful. It was my first visit, and I tried to stay fully present, absorbing as much of the city’s energy as possible; yet I still feel I barely scratched the surface. There are countless moments I hold onto, but one stands out: waking to a bright, clear morning and, from my hotel room on the 34th floor of Fairmont Tokyo, spotting Mount Fuji in the distance. It appeared as a majestic presence on the horizon, wishing the city a good day.’

– Sofia de la Cruz, travel editor

Vienna, Austria

‘Vienna is a really great city for a short getaway, especially for those interested in design. The city is filled with hidden gems, such as the interiors and ambience of Café Prückel, located just across the street from the Museum of Applied Arts (MAK). Be sure to check out the numerous storefronts designed by Hans Hollein throughout the city, including the iconic façade of the Retti candle shop. One of the highlights for me was the Roman Catholic church depicted above, built in the late 1970s by architect Viktor Hufnagl.’

– Sebastian Jordahn, head of video

Watamu, Kenya

‘Earlier this year, I travelled to Kenya and spent time in Watamu, a coastal town known for stunning white-sand beaches, coral reefs, mangroves and a large marine life. I was there for a private yoga retreat with a yoga company called Pana and stayed in a one-of-a-kind treehouse, Watamu Tree House, near Watamu Beach. Our treehouse retreat, built by the family who runs it, rises through the landscape, from the ground to the top floor, with shimmering coloured glass mosaics. Each day in Watamu began with yoga in the studio at the top of the building, which offered quiet and perspective. Practising yoga above the ground, with the sea nearby and trees in the distance, felt grounding. Fresh vegetarian meals formed the core of each day, as each meal came with coconut water and juices made fresh each morning.’

– Jamilah Rose-Roberts, social media editor

Pasta house Relleno has been shaping a new visual rhythm for casual dining since its launch in Madrid in 2023. Its formula – freshly made, fast-delivered filled pasta, paired with a tongue-in-cheek attitude (‘Your palate is our muse’) – quickly seduced devotees of Italian tradition across the Spanish capital.

Relleno, Barcelona

What began as a delivery-only operation has now materialised into a bold flagship in Barcelona, where comfort meets futurism, and the brand’s ethos (‘Maximalism served daily’) becomes spatial. Local studio Isern Serra took Relleno’s name (meaning ‘filling’ in Spanish) almost literally, crafting a sculptural envelope of foam-filled cushions wrapped in metallic fabric, arranged as a padded grid across the walls.

‘Each piece, through its shape and materiality, evokes the idea of filled pasta, establishing a direct link between the product and the space that contains it,’ says studio founder Isern Serra. The immersive two-storey space opens with a cavernous entrance: a five-metre-high volume lined with stainless steel digital kiosks and an ordering counter, over which hangs an inox lamp by French artist MLK Furniture.

‘The architectural elements were designed not only to be aesthetically compelling but to narrate the brand’s story through form and material,’ Serra adds. As the ceiling drops, the atmosphere shifts into something more intimate. Diners sink into poufs upholstered in the same metallic textiles, while a glowing lightbox at the rear – echoed again on the upper level – bathes the space in a colour that can be adjusted to suit the mood.

Upstairs, a sweeping custom-made sofa snakes through the room, anchored by circular stainless steel tables and bespoke stools by MLK Furniture. The padded grid continues across the ceiling, while mirrors and RGB fixtures animate the periphery with shifting reflections. At the centre, an existing structural pillar has been transformed into a sculptural stainless steel table, ringed with vivid orange stools.

Relleno is located at Via Augusta, 39, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, 08006 Barcelona, Spain.

A new look and feel is breathing fresh life into one of Barcelona’s largest and most recognised hotels. Set in a 44-storey skyscraper of glass and steel, Hotel Arts was originally built for the Olympic Games in 1992. It’s a waterfront landmark in the Catalan capital – and New York-based design studio Meyer Davis is now transforming it from head to toe, in a multi-phase renovation that aims to create appeal for a new era.

Meyer Davis unveils a new look for Hotel Arts Barcelona

The first milestone – unveiled in summer 2025 – was a redesign of the property’s nearly 500 bedrooms and suites. All are exterior-facing, offering vistas across either the Mediterranean coastline or the city and its mountainous backdrop. A view-centric philosophy therefore lies behind the redecoration: half the rooms are now themed ‘mountain’, with an earthy, fertile colour palette, while ‘sea’ rooms feature soft blues against sandier tones.

Svetlana Samardzic, senior associate at Meyer Davis, says one of her main objectives was to break down internal walls, allowing natural light to fill the sleeping, living and bathroom spaces. Mirrored interiors also accentuate the sense of openness and light, with reflections of the outdoors visible from nearly every angle. ‘Now, when you open the door, the view is right there,’ says Samardzic. ‘That’s the wow moment.’

This area of Barcelona was once known for textile production, explains Will Meyer, co-founder of the design firm whose wider hotel portfolio includes projects for Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental, Rosewood and W. His team drew from this local trade heritage when creating elements like the upholstering of their custom-made armchairs. ‘We looked at the different weaves and textiles made here,’ Meyer says, ‘which inspired our layering and patterns.’

Other designers have also created bespoke pieces, all evoking marine life: Ayus Design has crafted lampshades from sugarcane sculpted into shapes inspired by waves, while turquoise-coloured wall sconces by SkLO are moulded to resemble floating buoys. Translucent aquamarine tables by Extra Ordinario are made of lava stone, featuring glazed crackled tabletops, while hand-tufted rugs by Spanish atelier Nanimarquina are embossed with a pattern recalling droplets of water.

Catalan creatives bring a flavour of local creativity – like ceramicist Rosa Cortiella, who has created decorative clay pieces, and artist Lorena Canals, who has designed abstract textile wall hangings hand-woven by artisans in India. Smart new tech installations, meanwhile, support greater eco-consciousness: Lutron systems automatically switch a room’s energy supplies off when guests leave, and taps for osmotised drinking water reduce needless bottle usage.

The rooms are just the start of Hotel Arts’ overall revamp, estimated for completion in 2027; valued at 220 million euros, it’s set to be Spain’s most expensive hotel renovation on record. It will include a reworked layout merging indoor and outdoor space and a wellness centre spread across four floors; new F&B spaces will add to the existing gastronomical offer, which currently includes Paco Perez’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant Enoteca.

These aren’t the only changes afoot in this part of town: the multimillion-euro redevelopment of the surrounding Port Olímpic district includes new docking, walkways and leisure spaces. ‘The city is trying to redefine that area,’ says Meyer, ‘and the hotel is one of the most important features.’

Hotel Arts Barcelona is located at Carrer de la Marina, 19-21, Ciutat Vella, 08005 Barcelona, Spain.

A new research hub for the Basque Culinary Center, a respected academic institution devoted to the research and celebration of food, has opened in San Sebastián, Spain in a striking 9,000 sq m facility designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG). Called the Gastronomy Open Ecosystem, the building contains spaces for cutting-edge food science and the public alike.

Famed for training illustrious chefs in the craft of fine dining, the Basque Culinary Center has stood on the city’s outskirts since 2011, but this new €26 million development is located in the bustling Gros neighbourhood. The cascading design, which drew from the crashing waves of the Basque Country’s coastline, also acknowledges Mount Ulía just beyond.

'This is a place where the city meets the mountain,' says architect Bjarke Ingels, who first visited San Sebastián while studying architecture in Barcelona, 'so it’s also a meeting place for disciplines and cultures.'

The five-storey building includes flexibly-designed spaces that can be adapted for work, leisure and learning. Different levels are colour-coded by shades of pink corresponding with meat cooking grades: rare, medium and well-done. Windowed partitions create what Ingels calls 'vitrines' containing laboratories, classrooms and workshops, while the glass facade allows bystanders a glimpse of what’s cooking inside.

Public walkways and green areas lead around and above the site. There is an outdoor amphitheatre at the back, while the rooftop gardens offer a view of Zurriola beach, popular with surfers. The institute also stands on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage traversing northern Spain, which means trekkers have a striking new landmark to admire along the route.

The building's profile resembles a wave of moving water, yet there are no curved lines in the structure. 'Everything is made with modular elements,' Ingels explains. 'There is a symphonic quality to these rational elements coming together to create the illusion of a wave.'

A brise-soleil adds to this feeling of dynamism and also, according to BIG architect João Albuquerque, shades the interiors.

The rust-red building is clad in weathering steel, a move that recalls the monumental works of the late Basque sculptor Eduardo Chillida, whose open-air museum is in nearby Hernani. Ingels says he was drawn to the richness, weight and industrial energy of the metal and also to Chillida’s 'gently curving rectangular geometry,' which informed the dynamic modules.

Simplicity, according to Ingels, is a crucial ingredient in both architecture and gastronomy. 'It's like making a dish with the simplest ingredients,' he says, 'but it’s the magic of the kitchen that brings out something incredible.'

A defining trait of the Reina Sofia Museum is its beguiling conflux of architectural styles. A key pillar of Madrid’s art mile, it occupies the bones of an 18th-century hospital designed by José de Hermosilla and Francisco Sabatini, formative figures in the city’s neoclassical fabric. The museum’s opening in 1990 followed an extensive renovation shaped by several practices, with its later expansion – and most recognisable form – realised through the contextual vision of Jean Nouvel.

The new cinema at Reina Sofia Museum

The modern and contemporary art museum’s architectural legacy continues to evolve, its next chapter marked by the transformation of a former auditorium, built in 1987 by Jaume Bach with Gabriel Mora, into an enclave devoted to audiovisual arts.

Bach now revisits the project alongside Anna and Eugeni Bach, dreaming up a new cinema and auditorium that nod to the aesthetic sensibilities of cinematic worlds ranging from Luis Buñuel to David Lynch, and from Pedro Almodóvar to Aki Kaurismäki. It also acknowledges the legacy of the neighbouring Cine Doré and Stockholm’s Bio Skandia.

Situated within the Sabatini building, Bach sought to preserve the venue’s singular character. The generous vaulted entrance hall retains a preserved serliana that conceals a triangular projection hub framed by velvet curtains. The old hospital windows have been closed with wooden panels, their carved raindrop motifs offering a tactile contrast to the overarching red palette.

The screening room transitions into deeper blue tones to prevent reflections. Here, the 133-seat area has been reconfigured to increase the slope and improve sightlines to the screen, while the emblematic suspended triangle has been reimagined as a large acoustic screen concealing the central speakers.

‘The blue of the sky and the red of the carpet recall classical theatres, establishing a link between the function of the space and the tradition of cinema, especially since it is located in a neoclassical building,’ says Bach.

The new cinema will host the museum’s film and new-media programme throughout the year. It is also available for private hire, tailored for events ranging from meetings, courses and conferences to screenings, presentations and press gatherings.

Reina Sofia Museum is located at Santa Isabel, 52. 28012 Madrid, Spain.

In Madrid, Marta de la Rica has turned her design studio inward, creating The Lab as a place to test how ideas take physical form and how matter, once engaged, begins to think for itself.

'What felt unresolved had more to do with form than substance,' she reflects. 'The tension between structure and play, colour and restraint remains, but now it’s applied at a smaller, more intimate scale.' The project extends that exploration into a site of experiment and transformation, where intuition meets technique and materials find their voice

The Lab, by Marta de la Rica

The Lab exists within her studio, moving to its own tempo and allowing ideas to evolve through collaboration and material study. 'Each collection becomes an in-depth exchange with an artisan or artist,' she notes. 'It lets us create pieces that can belong to our interiors while standing alone as singular works.'

Within The Lab, making serves as a method of research, an open system where gesture tests what drawing can only suggest. Dialogue with material and craftsman reshapes each idea in real time. 'Rigour and risk are perfect words for it,' de la Rica affirms. 'The balance lies in staying open to change while keeping a sense of direction. You have to allow evolution without losing focus.'

For de la Rica, material is more than medium; it becomes participant. 'The material speaks,' she adds. 'Its texture, weight or resistance can suggest a gesture we hadn’t imagined. You have to listen; that dialogue often leads to unexpected results.'

Dubbed Of Marble & Metal, the Lab's inaugural collection features a temperamental materiality: marble patient and composed, metal restless and quick to react. Their interaction becomes a kind of alchemy, a negotiation between calm and impulse.

Feeling, too, is treated as something tangible. De la Rica considers emotion capable of form, able to inhabit a polished surface or the glow of reflected light. 'Emotion can live within an object,' she observes. 'In a texture that invites touch or a form that quietly makes you smile.'

Elsewhere, playfulness offsets precision. A lamp shaped as a hand holding a torch, a table poised on bronze paws – gestures that temper discipline with wit. 'I’m quite organised, sometimes even controlling,' she admits, 'but The Lab is where I let go. It’s where I can play, and enjoy it.'

The Lazy Susan Dining Table, inspired by family meals, lets sharing take shape through motion, as objects pass and return with convivial rhythm. As its marble top revolves, plates and bottles slide between hands, extending conversation through touch and timing. Around that motion, The Lab’s ethos stays in flux, responsive to change and sustained by collaboration.

Of Marble and Metal collection is available from martadelarica.es from 1 November 2025

Housed in a 15th-century noble palace in Seville’s old town, Hotel Casa del Limonero invites guests into the rich history of Al-Andalus, with grand Mudejar columns in the central courtyard and splendid ceramic tiles hand-painted with various floral, vegetal and geometric patterns. Now a stylish new boutique hotel, it throws the rich opulence of this Andalusian heritage into sharp relief with an array of modern and contemporary art and design.

Wallpaper* checks in at Hotel Casa del Limonero

What’s on your doorstep?

Located in the Judería (Jewish quarter), Casa del Limonero is hidden among the narrow, winding cobbled streets of Seville’s historic centre. Major sites like the cathedral and Real Alcázar palace lie a five-minute walk away – but for a more tucked-away attraction, pop into the enchanting Casa de Salinas, where visitors relive Renaissance-era Seville. Historic masterpieces are found at Casa Fabiola and the Santa Isabel de Hungria academy, while contemporary art galleries like Haurie, Zunino and Rafael Ortiz are also nearby. There are traditional tapas at casual bars like La Bartola, Casa Morales and La Fresquita – or, for a sophisticated experience in innovative contemporary Andalusian fine dining, walk 10 minutes over to Sr Cangrejo.

Who is behind the design?

The French art collector who owns Casa del Limonero (and prefers to remain anonymous) has filled the spaces with her glittering collection of paintings, photography, sculpture and furniture. She also worked with Seville-based interior designer Ernesto de Ceano, who has sculpted a new beige stucco fireplace, whose swirling, conic form is inspired by the shape of an elongated tower shell. Carmen Riego, a local expert in heritage restoration, was enlisted for her specialism in the delicate ceramic murals widespread in Andalusia, while Luis Balmaseda – a cabinetmaker from Écija – restored the original woodwork.

The standout design elements

Seating pieces around the property range from 16th-century wooden Savonarola chairs from Florence to India-inspired modernist cane armchairs by Pierre Jeannette and 1960s ‘Mies’ loungers by Archizoom Associati. Antiques like an ebony and bone bureau from Renaissance Italy and a Baroque church altarpiece from Mexico contrast with an art deco rosewood table by Jacques Adnet and a contemporary, multicoloured glass and aluminium cabinet by Doshi Levien.

It’s a feast for visual art lovers too: the dining room houses an abstract oil-on-canvas by Spanish painter Manolo Valdés, a wall hanging by Malian textile artist Abdoulaye Konate and a crochet-covered bull’s head by Joana Vasconcelos; a series of black-framed pieces by Mat Collishaw hangs in the stairway alongside a linen and plaster installation by Colombian artist Olga de Amaral. The corridors display around 20 works by Malian photographer Malick Sidibé, while photos by Moroccan artist Hassan Hajjaj and South Korean photographer Bae Joon Sung are also nearby.

The rooms to book

Each of the 14 rooms and suites offers a different design concept. The ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ room has a retro look, with vivid green walls and red backlit cabinets displaying decorative objects from the owner’s travels around the world. In the ‘Italiana’ junior suite, a 19th-century fluted wooden bed and a steel navy safe transformed into a minibar are set against two mid-century leather seats by Arne Jacobsen and a lacquered brass wardrobe by Roland Mellan, inspired by the Japanese tsugaru nuri technique. But for a room with a view, opt for ‘Mirador', whose comparatively understated decor is balanced by a more extravagant vista of the Giralda belltower from the private terrace.

Where to switch off

The alluring pool and hammam area feature aquamarine-coloured Italian and Moroccan tiles, complete with a treatment room for relaxing massages. The garden filled with orange and lemon trees is ideal for an early evening aperitif, as is the rooftop with a panoramic view. There’s also a cosy library overlooking the gardens – and don’t miss the fireplace lounge upstairs, complete with a pastel-coloured modernist sculpture by Ettore Sottsass, a Pop Art piece by Daniel Cherbuin and midcentury sofas by Gio Ponti and Federico Munari.

The verdict

Casa del Limonero is steeped in the building’s history: the hotel’s deer logo is inspired by hand-painted motifs found in the original 15th-century flooring discovered during the renovation, now displayed in the reception. These restored architecture elements provide a quintessentially sevillano backdrop to the otherwise strikingly eclectic and diverse decor, creating a visual experience that cuts across regions and eras while still in the heart of Andalusia.

Hotel Casa del Limonero is located at C. Guzmán el Bueno, 4, Casco Antiguo, 41004 Sevilla, Spain.

Mallorca’s Voramar Supermarket is no ordinary grocery store. Situated in the Port of Pollensa, this distinctive destination combines local produce with architectural grit. Designed by Minimal Studio – winner of the Gold award at this year’s Japan International Design Pioneer Awards – the space has been reimagined as a brutalist wonderland.

Tour this brutalist supermarket in Spain

Voramar is a fully functioning supermarket, with an extensive wine cellar, a takeaway section and an array of produce. Yet, Minimal Studio’s project – named Plastic Box – goes beyond conventional retail design, transforming the supermarket into a site of architectural exploration. Let’s step inside.

The supermarket is encased in a monolithic concrete shell, exuding material austerity. Sculptural counters, steel shelving and polished floors all echo brutalist architecture’s language, while overhead, a modular ceiling composed of more than a thousand plastic crates gives an industrial edge, while also filtering light to cast shifting geometric shadows throughout the day. The contrast between the unadorned façade, which is marked by dark portal entrances, and the brightly illuminated interior captures the quintessential sensory experience of entering a supermarket.

Plastic Box is more than an exercise in aesthetics; it serves as a critique of consumer culture, symbolised by the oppressive presence of the stacked crates. The use of brutalist aesthetics – which emerged in the midcentury and reflected the modern construction techniques that enabled mass housing, later resented for its perceived soullessness – also resonates with the commentary.

Brutalism is often criticised for its not-exactly-sustainable properties (due largely to its historic use of concrete, hence the emergence of movements like eco-brutalism). Plastic Box challenges that legacy and embraces a circular approach: the plastic crates are recycled and integrate ventilation and rainwater collection systems, and all elements are repurposed from industrial contexts.

Minimal Studio’s supermarket not only reinvents the urban commercial space – offering a true immersion for brutalism enthusiasts – but also asks us to interrogate it.

Madrid has always thrived on artistic tension: between heritage and rebellion, classicism and the avant-garde. The Prado, Reina Sofía, and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums still anchor the city’s ‘golden triangle of art’, yet past these marble halls filled with European treasures lies another Madrid, one shaped by the insurgent galleries and collectors that are placing the Spanish capital on the global contemporary stage.

The 2025 edition of ARCO Madrid gathered 214 galleries from 36 countries, turning the city into the art world’s spring focal point. But beyond the contemporary art fair’s temporary pulse, a constellation of cultural projects is now repositioning Madrid more permanently. The capital has become a hotbed of artistic proposals, with an increasing number of international collectors choosing to settle here.

At the centre of this momentum is the arts project Solo. Established a decade ago by entrepreneurs-turned-collectors Ana Gervás and David Cantolla, it has steadily become one of Spain’s most innovative cultural initiatives. ‘From the start, we’ve tried to remain on the experimental side of what it means to build an arts project: not too extreme, but also never taking ourselves too seriously,’ say Gervás and Cantolla.

The pair unveiled their first public space in 2018 on Plaza de la Independencia. It offers a mix of permanent and rotating exhibitions, and more than 1,200 works, but access is by appointment only, so a visit feels closer to a private viewing than a museum outing. ‘It was a turning point that allowed us to present ourselves to the public for the first time,’ they add. Further north, Solo Castanedo in Cantabria expands their reach with a rural outpost devoted to research and production.

Solo’s support for artists has evolved organically, too, from acquisitions and residencies to exhibitions and grants. The annual Solo AI Award, now in its third edition, funds projects at the intersection of art and machine learning, while the Artistic Support Program provides tailored career guidance, production support and international exposure.

In 2018, Solo made headlines with Memories of Passersby I, by Mario Klingemann, the first AI artwork to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s London: a pair of endlessly morphing portraits, generated live by neural networks. Beyond digital experiment, last year Solo Independencia turned to Juan Barjola, a key figure in 20th-century Spanish painting. His stark, expressionist canvases of twisted and distorted figures offered a grounding counterpoint. The exhibition was, for the founders, a deeply personal milestone.

Now comes their most ambitious chapter, Solo CSV, which resists definition, operating without a fixed programme and designed to reveal itself gradually. That might sound contradictory; after all, a gallery is, more traditionally, a space for public display. Yet for Gervás and Cantolla to reveal too much, too soon, risks reducing the place to a passing novelty. ‘More than a strategy, it is a philosophy that allows things to grow and find their own form,’ they explain. ‘What we want is to build, step by step, what this space can mean and how it can take shape. You might come across a work of art revealed only at a single hour, on a single day each year.’

Tucked into Madrid’s Moncloa-Aravaca district, Solo CSV carries the weight of history. Nearby once stood the Quinta del Sordo, where Francisco de Goya produced his haunting Black Paintings – works that would echo through the birth of modern art. The 4,500 sq m complex itself is a former printing press, once home to Semana magazine. After four decades lying derelict, the site was reimagined by Estudio Herreros.

Navigating Solo CSV is intentionally disorienting. ‘We aimed for every space to be simultaneously the interior of one and the exterior of another. And while each seems directly connected, that isn’t always the case,’ says Juan Herreros, founder and partner of the Spanish architecture studio, whose most representative project is arguably the Munch Museum in Oslo. At Solo CSV, a skeletal structure of reinforced concrete, all finished in white plaster, provides the framework, while additions were realised in dry construction, assembled on site by skilled carpenters and metalworkers.

‘It’s a kind of labyrinth where we can’t promise which part you will get to discover, but we will do our best to make sure you get lost,’ note Gervás and Cantolla. Visitors enter through steel doors still bearing their foundry marks, now punctured with Solo’s circular logo. Inside, a plaza opens onto a retro café and Bowman Hal, a gallery hosting shows in partnership with worldwide institutions. On display until 15 November are works by Aaron Johnson organised with the gallery Almine Rech. This will be followed by a Siro Cugusi exhibition and the launch of Movimiento 37, a network promoting exchange between galleries and artists.

From here, areas remain a secret, although Gervás and Cantolla reveal some of what’s to come. ‘There are some bright areas for reading comics, an art lab, and spaces for visual arts, films or video game sessions.’

Traversing Solo CSV feels dreamlike, its paths slipping from memory as if refusing to be pinned to a layout. What anchors the experience is the collection itself, a riotous choreography of sculpture, painting and digital works that shifts between the surreal and the confrontational. Canadian sculptor David Altmejd’s crystalline figures dialogue with Japanese artist Osamu Mori’s almost totemic wooden sculptures. On the walls are Neo Rauch’s surrealist tableaux and Gary Simmons’ chalkboard erasures. One of the most notable digital interventions is Dutch collective Smack’s hyper-slick animation Speculum, which reinterprets Bosch’s The Garden of Earthly Delights for the 21st century.

Gervás and Cantolla are keen to keep thinking outside the box. ‘Our mission? To support contemporary art, to explore and to stay awake, resisting the temptation to become a recognised model for as long as we can.’ Solo CSV may be introverted by design, but it embodies the Spanish capital’s outward surge: a city finding its contemporary voice with equal parts confidence and curiosity. ‘Madrid has changed enormously in recent years, and its momentum is remarkable,’ the pair say. ‘We feel fortunate to live through this time and to play a part in it.’

Solo CSV is located at Cta. de San Vicente, 36, Moncloa - Aravaca, 28008 Madrid, Spain.

This article appears in the November 2025 Art Issue of Wallpaper*, available in print on newsstands, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today

Feria Hábitat València is Spain’s biggest fair for furniture, lighting, decoration, home textiles and interior design. Held annually, it brings together industry professionals to showcase the spectrum of Spanish design today.

Wallpaper* was on the ground at the 59th edition of Feria Hábitat València, where we observed several themes. Firstly, visual appeal alone no longer seems to cut it: pieces were clever and customisable. Hidden tabs reclined seats; connections between infinite modular configurations were hidden; and new materials allowed furniture to move between indoor and outdoor use. What sets these innovations apart from the heavy-duty mechanisms of yesteryear is how discreet they are – the old trade-off between style and function no longer applies.

On the topic of indoor-outdoor living, Feria Hábitat València continued to embrace this well-established theme. Many collections featured earthy, organic aesthetics and had a strong focus on outdoor furniture.

Read on to discover the collections that stood out to us for their subtle, contemporary and organic design language and, in many cases, genuinely innovative add-ons.

Andreu World

This year, Andreu World celebrated its 70th anniversary with the opening of a new showroom in Valencia and a strong presence at Feria Hábitat València. The brand reaffirmed its leadership in sustainable design, showcasing new collections made with 100 per cent FSC-certified wood, biodegradable biopolymers, recycled materials and eco-conscious textiles.

Designers on show included Patricia Urquiola, Piergiorgio Cazzaniga, Benjamin Hubert, Alfredo Häberli and Rodolfo Dordoni. Urquiola’s ‘Bolete’ armchair and Cazzaniga’s ‘Gala’ chair were some of the most impressive examples of technical yet luxurious design: the former is on wheels but locks in place when sat on, while the latter has a discreet reclining tab.

These collections echoed a defining message of the fair: the future of design lies where artistry meets innovation – in subtle features that elevate the function and the experience of each piece.

Ondarreta

Ondarreta’s stand at Feria Hábitat València 2025 created an immersive, almost dreamlike atmosphere using suspended fabric panels. The brand debuted ‘Gumi’ by Made Studio – a modular sofa with soft, rounded shapes reminiscent of gummy bears. The hidden-connection system allows seamless transitions between modules, while castors and water-repellent upholstery enable outdoor use – another example of subtle, functional innovation at the fair, as well as of the desire to bring the outdoors in and vice versa. In this spirit, ‘Olivia’, a new collection inspired by olive branches, features sculptural connections between armrests and seats that mirror the organic forms found in nature.

Elsewhere in the presentation, the ‘Tam’ collection explored circular forms, and the ‘Mibu’ series, designed by Nadia Arratibel, drew on Japanese tradition, offering chairs, stools and tables crafted from ash wood with optional upholstery – minimal, elegant and tactile.

Expormim

Expormim introduced ‘Meridies’, a new collection by Italian designer Roberto Lazzeroni. Designed for both indoor and outdoor spaces, the collection is versatile, reflecting the growing trend of blurring the lines between inside and out. The name comes from the Latin word for ‘midday’, evoking the cool, shaded spaces where people rest during the hottest hours – this Mediterranean sensibility is central to Expormim’s heritage, expressed through traditional weaving and woodworking techniques.

Meridies is crafted mainly from FSC-certified sapele wood, and draws inspiration from rattan – a signature Expormim material. Lazzeroni’s seating features generous padding and semicircular backrests that subtly reference petals, seeds and leaves, and offer both physical and visual softness. A series of ceramic and travertine side tables completes the collection.

Mobboli

Mobboli presented ‘Nest’, a table collection by Danish design studio Norm Architects, which reflects a widespread emphasis on versatility and customisation. Nest is designed to defy categorisation – equally at home in offices, meeting rooms, restaurants, hotels or residences. The rectangular tables feature a minimalist steel structure with laser-cut trestle legs and a central beam, providing both stability and elegance while also accommodating power strips, cable trays and other add-ons like dividing screens and lighting – seamlessly integrated technical detail.

Mobboli’s modular ‘Mick’ benches by Patrick Norguet, gathered-upholstery ‘Iggy’ chairs, ‘Tibo’ poufs, and side tables by Arnau Reyna all reflected the brand’s flexible approach to form and function. Other standout pieces included the ‘Split’ modular sofa by Venture – featuring wraparound backrests and floating frames – and the ‘Peach’ armchairs, distinctive for their inviting curves and padded headrests.

Nanimarquina

Nanimarquina presented a tactile and organic collection at Feria Hábitat València 2025, highlighting the emotional resonance of handwoven design. The tones and textures of ‘Garden’, an outdoor rug series made from recycled PET and coconut fibre, echo earth and stone.

‘Wabisabi’ poufs, crafted from 100 per cent New Zealand wool, offered softness in a grounded, serene palette, while the ‘Nuance’ collection by Stefan Scholten played with near-monochromatic tones that shift under different light conditions.

One of the most engaging pieces was ‘Folded’ – a sculptural bench created with Estudi Manel Molina that mimics a folded-over rug. Other standouts included ‘Alga’, a rug that is meant to evoke the sand and sea, and ‘Topo’ by Marc Morro, which used primary colours and basic geometry for a minimalist aesthetic.

Vondom

Vondom’s presence at Feria Hábitat València reaffirmed its commitment to bold, sculptural furniture for both indoor and outdoor living. The highlight was Mel, a new collection by Ramón Esteve that reinterprets traditional wicker and rattan through a contemporary, tubular design language. Its soft, enveloping forms lend each piece a strong, modern identity.

Also featured were updated sun loungers from the ‘Love’ collection by Eugeni Quitllet and ‘Gatsby’ by Ramón Esteve, both reimagining functionality without sacrificing the brand’s sculptural flair. Vondom’s presentation demonstrated how outdoor furniture can also be advanced.

Viccarbe

Marking its 25th anniversary, Viccarbe celebrated at Feria Hábitat València with a thoughtfully curated stand and a programme of design talks featuring voices such as Monica Armani and Miguel Leiro. Notable launches included the serene ‘Manto’ lounge chair by Armani, and ‘Cubow’, a new collection by Meike Harde defined by clean lines and, again, modular versatility. Also featured were Patricia Urquiola’s sculptural ‘Burin’ table in marble and Piero Lissoni’s ‘Perxa’ chair in ash wood. The stand was completed by lighting from ‘Arkoslight’ and textiles from Nanimarquina, creating a cohesive atmosphere that celebrated a subtle, contemporary design language.

RS Barcelona

RS Barcelona brought its signature playful sophistication to Feria Hábitat València, drawing crowds with a huge football table whose glass top allows it to double as a dining table. The brand is known for sports tables that double as everyday furniture, alongside a growing portfolio of contemporary pieces.

Also on display were models from the ‘Plec’ collection – a sculptural series of occasional tables, side tables, desks and pedestals designed by Antoni Pallejà Office. This year, the collection expanded to include two new pieces: ‘Plec Shelving’ and ‘Plec Dining’, both embodying architectural precision through clean folds and symmetrical forms. The shelving system is modular, available in various lengths and heights, while the dining table comes in a palette of 21 colours, ranging from muted neutrals to vibrant hues.

Vical

Vical’s two exhibition spaces at Feria Hábitat València 2025 showcased the brand’s dedication to material richness and artisanal craft. At Vical Design, José Manuel Ferrero presented Jacquard – a collection of contemporary sofas and armchairs that celebrate texture and pattern inspired by the 19th-century loom of the same name.

Designer Pep Gramage contributed three series: ‘Brutalist’, made from saltwood, referenced the forms of brutalist architecture. ‘Gàbia’ drew from Japanese kumiko woodworking, using vertical slatted mango wood to create structured designs. ‘Pètria’ channelled Iceland’s basalt rock formations through dramatic, contrasting pieces.

At the Vical Home space, meanwhile, the brand revisited its roots (it was founded in 1950 in L’Ollería as an artisan in basketry and wickerwork), presenting updated classics that bridge tradition and modernity.

A new Spanish house nestled amid leafy nature outside Tarragona is defined by its textured, geometric volumes and warm, colourful hues. Its sculptural, robust form is not an architect's flight of fancy but a direct brief from the clients – a couple working in the digital space, who were after ‘a solid […] heavy house’ to envelope and underpin their daily life.

Tour a Spanish house designed to be touched

Barcelona-based architect Raúl Sánchez, who designed the house, explains: 'precisely because their work is so immaterial, they wanted their future house to be the opposite: material over immaterial, volume and mass over lightness, experience over immediacy. Accustomed to an environment where all that is solid melts into air, they longed for their home to provide not just shelter, but a tangible, physical experience.'

Titled ‘House at Cala Tamarit’, the home was designed between two parallel, reinforced concrete walls, orientated to make the most of large openings carved towards the sloped site's views. Visitors enter via a sunken entry courtyard, accessible by descending a cascading exterior staircase.

This moment of immersion is juxtaposed by the double-height ceilings of the main social spaces within, which offer a generous interior enriched by carefully selected design-led furniture and green vistas across the tree canopies.

Inside, solid block surfaces delineate different areas in the house in an otherwise flowing living space. Meanwhile, solid blocks within the floorplan are designed to contain storage, bathrooms, and the kitchen.

Sánchez describes his design as a 'play of contrasts', and it is easy to see why – the concrete's weighty nature feels light in the context of this home's flowing nature and cantilevers. The scale fluctuates between generous and intimate, according to each space's function, while opaque, textured walls are balanced by long, blue-and-green vistas.

The furniture populating the spaces is similarly carefully considered, comprising classics (for instance, by Carlo Scarpa, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe and Miguel Milá – all sourced through Fenix Originals) and contemporary design pieces by art-inspired creatives such as Maxime Halot and Alex Bellotti (represented by EastWest Space in Barcelona).

Art plays an important role too. Pieces by Francisco Suárez and Malgosia Jankowska (both from Víctor Lope Arte Contemporáneo gallery in Barcelona) adorn the walls, strategically adding a touch of colour to the otherwise fairly neutral-hued interior.

A rainwater harvesting system, a simple, locally sourced palette of materials and timber elements that reduce the use of concrete support the architect's environmental strategy. He elaborates on the home's sustainable architecture features: 'Much of the Portland cement was replaced with natural pozzolans; recycled aggregates were used in place of quarried stone; and superplasticisers were added to minimise cement usage. Additionally, the façade incorporates larch wood from sustainably managed forests.'

As a whole, the home exemplifies Sánchez's bold but at the same time elegantly composed and considered take on architecture – past residential works include Barcelona house BSP 20, and Casa Magarola, in the suburbs outside the Catalan capital.

An ice cream craving is always latent, waiting for its cue. In Britain, it's roused by the toy-like chime of vans drifting through suburban streets – fairgrounds on wheels, plastered with cartoon cones and sun-bleached decals. The visual identity is maximalist and celebratory, yet the product itself remains restrained: the archetypal 99, a neat swirl of soft-serve crowned with the simplicity of a Cadbury Flake. It's at once both impulsive, yet ritualised.

In contrast, Italy could not be more different. Gelato is a passeggiata companion, its flavours artisanal and refined: pistachio, nocciola, stracciatella, amarena. Counters stretch wide, vitrines gleam, and pozzetti lids conceal the craft beneath polished steel. Each portion is shaped with a flat paddle rather than scooped: a fleeting moment of theatre, as opposed to a mere transaction.

The context of ice cream has always been inseparable from the experience of eating it: a mirror of history and culture. In Turkey, dondurma is dense and elastic, sold from brass-trimmed carts where fez-wearing vendors tease customers in playful routines. In India, kulfi is pulled from conical moulds at vividly painted stalls. In Mexico, tiled paleterías brim with rainbow ices and fruit sorbets dusted with chilli or chamoy.

Each country has long held to its aesthetic codes. But in recent summers, a new wave of parlours has emerged. Here, architects and designers approach ice cream as stagecraft, creating experimental environments that are as sensorial and inventive as the flavours themselves.

The evolution of the ice cream parlour

In Odessa, Tanu (‘Таю’ is Ukrainian for ‘I’m melting’) reframes the ice cream shop as a space of grown-up composure. Sivak+Partners resisted the usual pastel kitsch, instead wrapping the interior in undulating stainless-steel panels that ebb and flow like frozen liquid. What might have felt sterile was softened through finish: ‘Thanks to its matte, worn texture, the metal ended up resembling velvet or fabric on the walls,’ says studio founder Dmytro Sivak.

‘There’s no loud, boisterous music or children’s birthday-party vibe,’ Sivak adds. ‘Rather, it offers a calm and pleasant weekend serenity.’ This is a parlour where ice cream is contextualised as an adult ritual, not a sugar rush.

In a similar vein, El Equipo Creativo aimed to create something more grown-up for the design of Barcelona’s Gelato Collection by Spanish chef Albert Adrià. ‘We wanted a space that offered more than just ice cream, where each flavour would be presented as a collectable jewel,’ shares Natali Canas Del Pozo, co-founder and creative director of the studio, which borrowed aesthetics from perfumeries and jewellery stores for the project. The centrepiece is undoubtedly a glass display case designed like a block of ice.

Walls are lined with champagne-toned porcelain tiles, a material choice that echoes the creaminess of gelato. Overhead, octagonal glass light fixtures emit a cool glow. The entire design slows consumption: you don’t grab and go, you approach the counter as though entering a gallery. Adrià’s numbered, ever-changing flavours – recent ones include ‘balsamic candy,’ ‘hibiscus margarita’ and ‘mango green curry’ – are almost treated like precious stones.

Nearby, Amiko Gelato (also in Barcelona) takes a more exuberant, lush and playful approach. Masquespacio pushed Miami Art Deco into the future with pastel geometries, sculptural seating and a shifting play of light. Tropical greenery floods the room, set against ceramics, microcement and metal, creating a deliberate clash between nature and industry. ‘Organic forms and sculptural elements, directly inspired by ice cream, are seamlessly integrated into both the furniture and décor,’ explains Borja Sánchez Marín, product designer at the studio. The effect is lushly immersive, a sensorial oasis rather than a pit stop, sitting at the intersection of juvenile and mature.

Similarly, at The Dreamery in London, ice cream is recast as part of a longer, more indulgent ritual, while ensuring an immersive element: you stay for a glass of wine, under a ceiling mural that dissolves into infinity. English artist Lucy Stein created a canopy of folkloric creatures painted on unryu rice paper, backlit and reflected by three mirrored walls. The result is an enveloping dreamscape that makes time feel suspended.

The material palette – cement-coloured tiles, stainless steel bar, vintage Brutalist sconces by Marino Poccetti – sets a restrained stage, allowing the ceiling to dominate. ‘We wanted somewhere comfortable and playfully innocent,’ co-founder Alex Young says, ‘a retreat of sorts from cynicism and seriousness.’ Traditional English sweetshops informed the design, but nostalgia is filtered through sophistication.

Elsewhere, designers are looking at the past to inform the future of the ice cream parlour, while tuning it into a creative adult ritual. Scooped by Demetres at Square One in Toronto plays with cinematic artifice. ‘We were inspired by the simple, pared-down sets of 1940s and ‘50s films like The Gang’s All Here and An American in Paris, which used design elements like half-height partitions and gestural, line-painted backdrops that disrupt the vastness of the studio sets and ask the audience to use their imagination,’ explains Kfir Gluzberg, founder and principal at Kilogram Studio.

Fluted glass clad with mirrored film refracts light and movement, while perforated steel panels, lacquered with a soft pink automotive finish, shimmer under changing light. This choreography is deliberate: with no colourful tubs on display, attention shifts to the reveal of the scoop itself. ‘The lack of one clear focal point and the monochromatic palette draw heightened focus on the moment the ice cream is revealed,’ the architect notes.

Meanwhile, Gelato Messina’s Sydney outposts show how retro language can be sharpened into a contemporary brand identity. The Newtown site – described by Sans-Arc Studio as ‘a bit retro, a bit 1970s, but also a bit shiny’ – works with a narrow footprint, squeezing circulation around the central freezer. The architects borrowed cues from diners and mid-century gelato bars: timber panelling, a black-and-white chequered floor, and compact counter lines.

In Redfern, the diner influence is pushed further: cork wall panels and spotted gum bullnose battens hug bright orange light boxes, giving a vivid postmodern pop to the brand’s pint-sized offering. The atmosphere is cheerful yet disciplined, part retro homage, part contemporary riff. For Sans-Arc, each Messina outpost is an opportunity to evolve the brand language across multiple sites: ‘developing it over several spaces, improving and becoming more unique with time.’ Here, the parlour becomes an iterative brand experiment rather than a one-off showcase.

The new ice cream parlour occupies a threshold: between child-coded nostalgia and adult sophistication, between memory and reinvention. Designers are not erasing the kitsch traditions of the past, but translating them into new forms: velveted steel, jewel-like vitrines, dreamscape ceilings. The result is a typology redefined by tension; playful yet serious, indulgent yet reflective. Ice cream becomes both an artefact and a stage, suspended between different life stages.

And in each, the ritual itself is re-engineered. Whether through conceal-and-reveal, immersive theatre or sensory overload, ice cream is no longer a snack, but architecture’s most playful act of indulgence.

Jaç Hi-Fi Café is a new place to stop for coffee and surrender to sound. Designed by Isern Serra Studio, the Barcelona opening invites visitors into a Mediterranean interpretation of Japan’s revered jazz kissa. The name Jaç, which nods to jazz and recalls the Japanese listening bar, means ‘to recline, rest, and let go’ in Catalan. The project combines coffee and acoustics to create a setting where time feels recalibrated.

Jaç Hi-Fi Café, Barcelona

The 95 sq m interior is arranged as a sequence of tactile environments. At the entrance, a lounge introduces the palette with a concrete sofa softened by beige cushions, a sculptural Akari E lamp by Isamu Noguchi for Vitra, and custom walnut tables finished with lacquered beige tops. Stools by Noo.ma and an artwork by Chidy Wayne offset the neutral microcement shell with contrast and colour.

The bar functions as both counter and acoustic instrument. Crafted from a single monolithic slab of walnut by Fusteria Vidal, it doubles as a speaker cabinet, with shelving for vinyl, a baked-goods display, and custom Bloom Island speakers carved from the same timber. The uninterrupted grain runs across cabinetry and speaker fronts, binding architecture and sound into one continuous surface.

At the centre, a stainless steel communal table designed by Serra introduces a brutalist edge softened by the warm tones of surrounding wooden and metallic stools. Its reflective surface catches the light of Antoni Arola’s Lámina pendant for Santa & Cole, which hovers with sculptural precision above, amplifying the table’s role within the plan.

The rear alcove delivers the most immersive encounter; produced by Fusteria Vidal, the walnut installation curves across the wall and ceiling to form a semi-enclosed listening zone. A cylindrical column divides shelves filled with vinyl, while stainless steel Bloom Island speakers project finely tuned sound.

Cushions and low tables extend the invitation to linger, illuminated by the Disco wall lamp by Jordi Miralbell and Mariona Reventós. Smaller gestures reinforce the intimacy, including a four-seat window niche, discreetly integrated bathrooms, and a façade in iroko wood stained to match the walnut interior.

Coffee is roasted in-house, sourced from carefully chosen farms that highlight the character of each origin; matcha tea comes directly from two growers in Japan, found by Jaç owners Arnau and Lígia. Breakfast at home is the inspiration: tomato toast with Iberian cold cuts, pastries based on family recipes, and ingredients bought from the tienda de toda la vida – the traditional, family-run stores.

Jaç is located at Av. Diagonal, 335, L’Eixample, 08037 Barcelona, Spain.

The name of Ferdinand Fillod may not be as instantly recognisable as some of his modernist architecture peers, but midcentury aficionados will have the chance to explore the French engineer and designer's work this summer by heading down to Spain. Now on show at Terra Remota, this lesser-known piece of 20th-century design is the latest exhibit of prefabricated architecture on display at the vineyard owned by the Franco-Spanish couple Marc and Emma Bournazeau by the French border in northeastern Spain, with the help of Perpignan-based dealer Clément Cividino.

Discover the Tropical Pavilion and the work of Ferdinand Fillod

So, who was Ferdinand Fillod? A pioneer in prefabricated metal construction (which he explored some 15 years before Jean Prouvé - another famous figure in the field), Fillod was born in the Jura region in France. He went from setting up a business to produce agricultural equipment from galvanised metal (such as cooking vessels, drinking troughs and slurry tankers), to designing a method for constructing in prefabricated steel, for which he obtained a patent. His business, Constructions Métalliques Fillod, ended up shipping his designs internationally. Fillod died in 1956, but his company continued producing till the mid-1970s.

Cividino discovered this version of the Tropical Pavilion, neglected, on a site near Marseille. He decided to acquire it, bring it back to its former glory, and exhibit it at the estate. '[Fillod’s] structures are...extremely straightforward to assemble. Each piece slots together, which meant they could be easily sent to the four corners of the globe. They were a little like Ikea before its time,' he says.

The structure's original prototype was created for the International Exhibition of Urbanism and Housing in Paris in 1947, but ultimately, only nine are believed to still exist today. 'All the experts in my field were aware there was one in France,' says Cividino, 'but nobody knew where it was. Fillod was the precursor of Prouvé, a pioneer in the art of prefabricated metallic structures, and a genius whom nobody has really brought to light.'

This particular pavilion was originally created in 1951. It measures 90 sq m inside and 30 sq m outside, in the shape of a terrace. A series of steel arches form its main body. On it, slanted panels are clipped and bolted – some featuring openings. When Cividino found it, it had served as offices for the French national telecommunications firm, France Télécom, in Marseille for years and was in a poor state.

Cividino explains what attracted him to it: 'The specificity of Fillod’s Tropical Pavilions is their double roof structure, which is so very beautiful. They really set them apart from the rest of his buildings and it’s of note that they have been given the “20th-century Heritage” label by the French government. Air enters between the two roofs and is propelled inside thanks to trap doors in the lower one. It’s also important to mention their inclined panels, which are made from ribbed sheet metal, which are incredibly easy to install. It’s a really clever method of construction.'

Cividino and Terra Remota have in the past played host to a number of exceptional 20th-century structures, from a former Total gas station designed by Jean Prouvé, to one of Georges Candilis’s futuristic Hexacubes homes, and a house designed in 1969 by a Greek architect called Nikolaos Xasteros (the last was ultimately acquired by none other than Brad Pitt).

In Ibiza, life revolves around hedonism; a contagious raison d’être that not even the most structured contemporary gallery, with all its impenetrable silence, can resist. In the laid-back village of San Miguel, on the northern side of the island, Gathering Ibiza has carved out a vibrant space of dual identities. Part gallery, part outdoor bar and restaurant, the originally London-born venue seeks to capture the elements that make this Balearic destination so beloved: its energy, creativity, and people.

Enter Mira by Gathering, Ibiza

Since opening in 2024, Gathering has hosted a diverse and successful series of exhibitions, from its inaugural ‘Substance’ to the current ‘Sunset Strip’ (a collaboration with Berlin-based gallery Société.) Meanwhile, its hospitality arm has steadily cultivated a devoted following of its own. Set in an open-air courtyard with an adjoining indoor cove, Mira by Gathering glows in a delicate shade of pink, adorned with Hans Bellmer-esque ‘breast lights’ by Turner Prize-winning British artist Tai Shani; a playful setting suited to both intimate and group rendezvous.

A collaboration between Gathering’s in-house team and Bellistri Maroli Studio, the design prioritises the display of artwork. A revolving outdoor installation commands the terrace, while covered sections create more secluded corners, where guests dine beneath mirrored spray paintings by Stefan Brüggemann. Bespoke furnishings – bamboo armchairs, stainless steel tables, and pink sheepskin throws – extend the theme of glamorous nonchalance, echoing the 1970s tension between austerity and decadence.

Leading the Mediterranean culinary front is Italian chef Giacomo Notarbartolo, formerly of Nobu Restaurant Ibiza. Seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients form the base of unpretentious yet flavourful dishes, such as carob focaccia with local sobrasada or grilled octopus with anticucho nora and sweet potato. Drinks match the sunshine: the aromatic Ibiza Highball blends amaretto, lavender, vodka, and soda for a bright, botanical hit, while The Naked Traveller combines vodka, Aperol, Chambord, lime juice, and mint in a citrusy twist.

Mira by Gathering also taps into a wider creative network by collaborating with other bars and restaurants. Recent pop-ups have included La Brillantina bar in Barcelona and Canopia in Mexico City. Beyond its artistic and culinary pursuits, the site hosts live music sessions on Thursdays and vinyl DJ sets on Sundays. Owner Alex Flick hopes Mira will fill a cultural void by uniting art, food, and music under one roof. ‘Ibiza is more than most expect; it’s a rich, diverse meeting ground for creative exchange. Mira captures that spirit and gives it a home,’ he tells Wallpaper*.

Mira by Gathering is located at Carrer Vicent Serra 4, Sant Miquel de Balansat, Ibiza, Spain.

Throughout history, holidays have been closely tied to agriculture, offering respite after the harvest or marking seasonal transitions. With the Industrial Revolution came a shift: leisure time emerged as a necessary pause from the grind of factory labour, a moment for rest and recovery.

Today, however, a new kind of holiday is taking root. Rather than escaping to distance themselves from rural life, travellers are being drawn back to it. Screen-weary professionals seek reconnection with nature, while a generation of eco-conscious guests is increasingly curious about the origins of their food. In response, a wave of luxury hotels is weaving agriculture into the heart of the guest experience, offering immersive farm stays that nourish both body and mind.

Harvesting a new kind of luxury

Leading this movement is a new type of creative director: a ‘farmer-in-residence,’ who often manages both the farm’s operations and designs the guest-facing experiences, helping visitors find their zen knee-deep in soil before heading to the spa. ‘To me, the value of having farmers-in-residence lies in making farming visible and tangible for our guests,’ says Peter Quinion, group operations director of Heckfield Place and the expansive Heckfield Home Farm.

‘It’s not just about managing the farm behind the scenes, but about being on-hand to talk about regenerative agriculture, animal welfare, composting and helping people see how these choices influence the food they eat and the land itself.’ These agricultural roles have swiftly become vital to the hotels’ operational teams.

Regarding Hotel Corazón’s farmer-in-residence, Emma Phillips, formerly of LA’s Flamingo Estate and Big Sur’s renowned Esalen Institute, owner Kate Bellm couldn’t be more enthusiastic. ‘Emma has not only transformed the farm area into a wild paradise of edible beauty, but she’s an integral part of the energy, happiness, and soul of the hotel. You will find her walking through the property with bundles of flowers and herbs, delivering her produce to various departments that work with her – always wearing her signature hat and a big, beautiful smile,’ says Bellm. Phillips works closely with the hotel’s chef, Eliza Parchanska, at the hotel’s newly opened Tatjana von Stein-designed terrace restaurant.

Christiane Wassmann, owner of Rastrello in Umbria, which is home to over 2,000 olive trees and a 400-year-old farmhouse, states that participating in the hotel’s olive harvest in October is a highlight for many guests. ‘We have visitors who have been harvesting with us for four years already. They say they prefer working on holiday, giving back to the land, rather than visiting museums and sightseeing.’

In a world filled with endless options for luxury accommodation, what exactly is attracting people to these simpler experiences? ‘I think people are craving genuine connection,’ says Quinion. ‘So much of modern life is disconnected from the land; food appears on shelves without any story. Spending time on the farm allows them to slow down and remember that everything comes from somewhere.’

This idea is echoed by José Godinho, who is the general manager of all farming operations at Portugal’s São Lourenço do Barrocal. ‘This is a different kind of luxury,’ he states about the 40-room hotel set on a 780-hectare farm. ‘It’s waking up to birdsong, walking through open fields alongside cows, connecting directly with the vegetable garden, and feeling a deep sense of calm. That too is luxury.’

But who exactly is booking into these luxury farm stays? ‘The farm programming at Wildflower appeals to solo travellers, couples, families, and corporate guests alike,’ says Kristin Soong Rapoport, co-managing partner of Wildflower Farms, Auberge Resorts Collection in Hudson Valley, which is home to a four-acre organic on-site farm. ‘We find these educational experiences are what our guests talk about most after visiting the property.’

To be clear, these experiences do not replace traditional wellness activities; they complement them. ‘The typical Wildflower Farms Leisure guest is highly educated and has stayed at the most luxurious places in the world. That guest demands high-quality fitness and wellness programmes as part of their daily routine,’ continues Soong Rapoport. ‘Their needs for wellness about nutrition and connection to the earth, family, and community are not always met, so we focus on this at the farm.’

Similarly, at Cap Karoso in Sumba, Indonesia, farm activities support the wellness experiences. ‘In fact, we moved to a farm-to-spa philosophy, and guests can experience harvesting plants that will be used during their treatments,’ says Teguh Wahyu Pramana, Cap Karoso’s head of agricultural operations. These robust farms play a critical role across many functions at the hotels, which of course includes the kitchen. Kobi Miterani, landscaping attendant for Six Senses Ibiza’s farm, noted that one of their most popular activities is a farm tour followed by breakfast or brunch.

‘During this activity, guests from the hotel spend about an hour walking through the fields, harvesting crops, and tasting vegetables directly from the soil and fruits straight from the trees,’ notes Miterani. ‘This experience gives them a deeper connection to nature and shows how Mother Earth dictates the way we function within our limitations, and how we can work in harmony with the natural world around us.’

Farm-led programmes aren’t just good for guests. If done properly, it can ripple out to benefit the surrounding community as well. Such is the case at Cap Karoso, which boasts a permaculture school where the farming team teaches locals how to increase their crop yield sustainably and runs community outreach programmes throughout the villages and schools.

‘The farm is proudly operated by a dedicated team of local Sumbanese employees,’ says Wahyu Pramana. ‘We envisage the farm becoming a centre for learning and knowledge sharing for the local Sumbanese community.’ In October, the hotel will host the first-ever Sumba Food Festival, with 600 guests to raise funds for local initiatives, such as clean water access and education.

Whether farming-led travel is a fad or the future, Wallpaper* asked Richard Christiansen, founder of Flamingo Estate, for his perspective. While guests can’t stay at Flamingo Estate (it’s Christiansen’s home and orchard), you can get a taste of the Flamingo Estate universe at select JW Marriott properties through the two brands’ recent collaboration on honey, curated playlists, and a signature scent.

‘In uncertain, difficult times, nature gives us hope and a sense of tradition and permanence, which is so important,’ says Christiansen. ‘We’ve always said that Mother Nature is the last great luxury house. I believe we need her more than ever now.’

It looks like the future of farm-led travel is ripe for even more growth.

At first glance, Twobo Arquitectura’s new courtyard house in Girona, Spain, appears to be a sprawling residential complex criss-crossed by colonnades, walkways, awnings and pools. In fact, the arrangement of the three key structures in the new 300 sq m house is carefully choreographed around three square patios, the tres patis of its name.

Tour this mesmerising courtyard house in Spain

The architects were inspired by classical typologies, particularly the ruins of the ancient Roman villas in the nearby Catalonian coastal city of Empúries, originally founded by the Greeks in around 575 BCE. The new house is composed of three structures, all of which turn inwards. The architects describe this as a ‘timeless Mediterranean typology of a house with an enclosing wall, a central sky-lit patio, and rooms organized around this central feature’.

A guest pavilion adjoins the carport directly opposite the entrance at the south of the plot. This sits alongside a kitchen garden, the smallest of the three patios. A covered walkway threads through the site, past an al fresco dining area and the large square swimming pool, surround on all four sides by the colonnades.

Two sides of the pool are flanked by the pavilions containing the principal accommodation. To the west is a bedroom wing, with two en-suites and a utility area, whilst the largest structure at the northern tip of the site contains the living room, dining area and kitchen, along with the primary bedroom suite.

The entire plot is enclosed by tall roughly plastered walls, creating a compound that feels set apart and separate from the outside world, as well as giving the house protection from northern winds. The sense of a integrated, self-contained complex is heightened by the framing device of the colonnades and planting, which includes grasses and lemon trees as well as a mature olive.

The Barcelona-based architects cite the influence of Le Corbusier and Swedish architect Sigurd Lewerentz in the arrangement of framed views, windows and apertures. There’s also influence from the layout of the grand Roman villa, particularly in the way the pool mirrors the shallow pond in large Roman homes – the impluvium - a natural way of collecting rainwater and cooling the interior. Even the use of concrete inside and out draws comparisons with the monumentality and durability of ancient ruins.

The sense of solidity is paired with the diaphanous arrangement of terracotta tiles and glass walls, creating screens that let light in but also preserve the privacy of the courtyard-facing bedrooms. Iroko wood panels at high level are paired with ceramic tiles and polished concrete floors, creating an earthy, warm domestic sphere with the occasional splash of colour, as in the bathrooms and the two blue tiled chimney features, one inside the main living space adjoining the stairs to a mezzanine level, and the other adjoining a yellow tiled outdoor kitchen besides the pool.

Twobo Arquitectura was set up in 2007 by María Pancorbo, Alberto Twose, and Pablo Twose in Barcelona. Working across housing developments and one-off private dwellings, the studio has won several awards for its considered approach.

Two-bo.com

In the port city of Santander, Spain, a renovation project has been newly revealed. Colección ES Headquarters, a multifunctional space designed to accommodate a private contemporary art collection, office space, and areas for social gatherings, has unveiled its new interiors – a contemporary, cotton candy-coloured delight.

Tour the Colección ES Headquarters in Santander, by Carbajo Hermanos

The project was led by architecture studio Carbajo Hermanos, which transformed the 600 sq m space. The client, a prominent businessman, was after a functional space that was both calming and minimal, serving as an office and a venue for hosting meetings and gatherings with friends and guests.

The architecture studio's co-founders, Andrea Carbajo and Galo Carbajo, drew on their early professional experience in Japan for inspiration. Now, the space is tranquil, elegantly pared down and airy, with an uncluttered look that taps into its straightforward, boxy, architectural bones.

Birch wood ceilings in a few smaller rooms add sophistication. The colour palette is simple but eye-catching. White acts as a canvas throughout, which is softened with greys in the flooring, pink partitions and light blue furnishings. The colours span the cotton-candy spectrum without resulting in a space that feels either elementary or too intense.

For many multifunctional spaces, a monochrome scheme seems the obvious choice as it brings uniformity and is easily adaptable. However, the softer, pastel colours here provide a welcome spin. The choice stemmed from the coastal city's colour palette and the architects’ emotional connection to it (it is where they spent their childhood).

The interior layout is based on the fundamental geometric coordinate axes, and is therefore divided into four parts, as a tribute to the collector’s background in mathematics. Exhibition areas make up the majority of the space.

Alongside display areas is a storage room for the art collection, a bathroom, two guest restrooms, a kitchen, and an office, which has large windows that frame a view onto an inner courtyard.

The layout is strengthened by gestures that bring everything together. Square glass partitions, framed in pink, divide the more utilitarian areas, such as the kitchen, while creating visual fluidity throughout the interior.

This unbroken visual connection allows the artworks to be at the forefront, while practical spaces slot in side by side around them, almost like in a series of snapshots.

The project is an example of how each architectural decision contributes to a coherent and purposeful atmosphere. The result is a serene environment that combines art and office life, allowing for moments of quiet contemplation and social interaction in perfect equilibrium.

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The Women is an acerbic and witty all-female play set among Manhattan’s moneyed elite. Clare Boothe Luce’s ageless comedy, a 1936 Broadway hit, follows a seemingly content socialite whose life turns on its head when she learns of her husband’s affair. Surrounded by an equally image-conscious, socially astute, and gossip-fuelled circle, she navigates betrayal, pride, and quiet reinvention. With a stellar cast led by Norma Shearer and Joan Crawford, the 1939 screen adaptation brilliantly retains the play’s sharp observational tone and wit, as does, to an extent, the 2008 remake.

The Women critiques and celebrates in equal measure – dissecting the performative reality of womanhood. It explores the layered codes, the pressures and the privileges, while acknowledging female solidarity and resilience. In this, it shares common ground with the work of the artist Cindy Sherman, whose new exhibition at Hauser & Wirth Menorca, ‘Cindy Sherman. The Women’, takes its title, literally and playfully.

Sherman’s first solo exhibition in Spain in over two decades, ‘The Women’ brings together key works from the 1970s to the 2010s – shown without a fixed timeline – to reconsider her legacy in light of today’s image economy, where identity is crafted for digital audiences and self-curation goes unquestioned.

In many ways, Sherman feels like the biographer of our world today. From the start of her career, she’s forensically dissected the ways we inhabit images. Her carefully constructed, highly performative, often cinematic works spoke to audiences way before the language of influencers and personal branding became part of the everyday. ‘She was decades ahead of our current moment of social media and the construction of identity for the camera,’ says the exhibition curator Tanya Barson.

Her artwork unpacks the layers of visual identity, examining how it’s constructed, projected and consumed, and the gazes in which women are subjected. Each persona she adopts is both clearly a mask and a mirror, reflecting the roles women are assigned, expected to play, sometimes reclaim. That this process now plays out across millions of screens daily across the globe makes Sherman’s explorations feel uncannily timely.

Hauser & Wirth Menorca, tucked away on the idyllic Illa del Rei just off the coast of Mahón harbour, invites moments of quiet contemplation. The island setting also sets the tone in the opening gallery, which features works from Sherman’s Ominous Landscapes (2010). Here, female figures dressed in haute couture (from original 1920s Coco Chanel pieces to later designs by Karl Lagerfeld) are digitally superimposed onto island scenes, from Capri to Shelter Island. There’s a sense of dislocation to these spectral women – their scale and presence slightly off, mirroring the disconnect between image and environment, and perhaps our current reality.

Themes of status and self-image continue in the Society Portraits (2008) and the 2016 Harper’s Bazaar commission. In both, women pose in lavish clothing and constructed settings, sometimes multiplied via exposure. The image becomes an echo chamber of aspiration, of artifice, of identity under scrutiny.

Perhaps more powerful is the Flappers (2016–2018) series. Sherman’s admiration for these women who challenged social norms and redefined fashion in the 1920s as acts of empowerment, emancipation and radical modernity is evident. The characters are handled with theatrical flair but without cruelty, with subtle nods to the visual language of the artist and photographer Otto Dix and August Sander. ‘There’s humour,’ says Barson, ‘but also a really intense identification,’ adding that one cannot assume a character ‘with this degree of proximity and accuracy without being somewhat sympathetic.’

Included here are Sherman’s seminal Untitled Film Stills (1977–1980) – the black-and-white photographs that propelled her to prominence as part of the Pictures Generation artists who were back then responding to mass media and celebrity. In each, Sherman styles herself and poses as various archetypal female characters (housewife, career girl, lonely city dweller) in the manner of starlets and scenes from mid-20th-century B-movies, film noir, art-house cinema. These are fabricated memories of cinematic tropes, for a sense of déjà vu without ever being recognisable.

‘These are scenes from films we think we’ve seen, but they don’t exist,’ explains Barson. ‘There is a sophistication in the way she presents the figure in a landscape or interior – the way she uses distance, close-up, framing. It’s highly cinematic.’

Also on view in the final galleries, and interesting to observe now as the world transforms by tech, are early works such as Bus Riders and Murder Mystery (1976), which laid the foundations for her interest in character, performance and process. They seem naïve, charming even. As we observe a young girl in oversized jeans slouched on a bus bench Barson remarks, ‘there’s always a sense that we recognise these women, not just from cinema or media, but from real life. We’ve seen them on the bus, in our families, sometimes in ourselves.’

She says Sherman has been visualising much of the theorising we’ve been trying to do. ‘Her work provides the space for theory to operate,’ she notes. Taken together, the works in ‘The Women’ feel eerily contemporary. At a time when we are all, in some sense, performing ourselves for anonymous audiences, not always to great effect, Sherman’s lifelong investigation into the performance of the self could not be timelier.

‘This isn’t a comprehensive retrospective. It’s a reintroduction,’ says Barson. ‘Many of the works haven’t been seen in Spain before. It made sense to follow a non-linear curation, to allow people to meet these images in fresh ways before returning to the more iconic works.’

On this quiet island, surrounded by Piet Oudolf’s wild gardens and the glimmer of the Mediterranean, Sherman’s work takes on a new rhythm. These images – so deliberately staged – feel even more constructed here, set against nature’s ease. They remind us how much identity is curated, not inherited. And just as The Women revealed the roles women are expected to play, Sherman’s characters, too, hold a mirror to the performances of modern life. As Barson notes, Sherman may well find new audiences at Illa del Rei – visitors unfamiliar with her practice, encountering it anew in this unexpected setting.

‘Cindy Sherman. The Women’ is at Hauser & Wirth Menorca until 26 October 2025

As one of the country’s most esteemed living fashion and portrait photographers, David Bailey is, and has long been, synonymous with the visual architecture of British fashion. From his initial Vogue appointment in 1960, by editor Ailsa Garland early in her short tenure at the title, to his much lauded collaborations with models like Kate Moss and Jean Shrimpton (the latter his former girlfriend, muse, and inadvertent co-captain of London’s Swinging Sixties), Bailey’s is a legacy that’s almost impossible to separate from the industry.

The moniker assigned to his latest exhibition, then, ‘David Bailey’s Changing Fashion’, at the Marta Ortega Pérez (MOP) Foundation in A Coruña, Spain, is wonderfully apt. ‘He loves a double-entendre in his titles, so it works for Bailey,’ says his son, Fenton Fox Bailey, a photographer in his own right and Bailey’s studio manager. ‘He did change how we see fashion, and as he puts it, “fashion has to change or you just have old-fashioned”.’

‘David Bailey’s Changing Fashion’ at the MOP Foundation

Perhaps surprisingly, given his decades-long career and worldwide appeal (he has published upward of 30 books – recently David Bailey: Eighties – and in the last three decades alone exhibited across the UK, US and Europe), ‘Changing Fashion’ is Bailey’s first major presentation in Spain, and arrives at the invitation of MOP president Marta Ortega Pérez. ‘Without question, David Bailey is a master of a visual language that is uniquely his own,’ she says. ‘From the early days, he consistently backed his own vision, breaking the rules of fashion photography and inventing new ones at will.’

Opened in December 2021 with an exhibition of work by Peter Lindbergh, the foundation, in the Galicia region of north-west Spain, has established a solid programme showcasing those whose work has shaped modern fashion photography, additionally staging exhibitions about Helmut Newton and Steven Meisel. ‘Marta has great taste,’ offers Fenton, ‘and the MOP is doing brilliant things for photography. The space they’ve built is incredible.’

The new show largely belongs to the 1960s and 1970s, key periods of Bailey’s career, because, as Fenton puts it, ‘it was just a brilliant time for fashion. [Also] many people in Spain might not have seen Bailey’s work in person, so starting at the beginning made sense.’ Featuring a vast selection of some 140-plus photographs, the exhibition highlights a number of Bailey’s most recognisable works – such as 1965’s at-the-time controversial Box of Pin-Ups – as well as several lesser-known pieces that have not previously been shown in public. ‘Bailey’s always looking ahead, so he hadn’t revisited a lot of this work in a while,’ says Fenton. ‘He always says, “If it wasn’t published, it wasn’t any good.” He’s very critical of his own work, but it actually helped us spot more unseen material.’

Alongside the prints, which are grouped by location and studio work and split between the two decades (nudes hang in the back, while more recent work closes the show), Bailey’s studio is also highlighted at the foundation. The studio was once likened to a nightclub – by the late Diana Vreeland, in a comparison with Irving Penn, whose studio was apparently more ‘like a cathedral’ – and in Spain, various ephemera, ‘things Bailey’s collected over the years’, are brought together in cabinets, building a fuller picture of how the celebrated photographer operates. ‘They show his love for travel and his eye for the unusual,’ says Fenton. ‘He’s always looking for the unexpected.’

‘David Bailey’s Changing Fashion’ at the MOP Foundation, A Coruña, Spain runs until 14 September 2025.

davidbailey.themopfoundation.org

This summer, the runway leads to the Riviera. Primarily across Europe, luxury hotels are quietly slipping into their seasonal roles as extensions of major fashion and lifestyle brands. Behemoths such as Burberry and Dolce & Gabbana are migrating from urban fashion capitals to the coast in the coming months, trading marble flagships for fresh ocean air and beachfront real estate. The formula is straightforward: exclusive pop-up boutiques flanked by monogrammed loungers and umbrellas, and occasionally, chef-led restaurants. Here are some of the hotel takeovers making a splash this summer – where you too can pop up in style.

Fashion hotel takeovers happening this summer

Burberry at The Standard Ibiza

Hot on the heels of its takeover at The Newt in Somerset, Burberry is off to embrace the Mediterranean sunshine, landing at The Standard, Ibiza, until October. The hotel’s seasonal rooftop bar and restaurant, Up, has been Burberry-ified with a bespoke check pattern in bright yellow. This energising design adorns the site’s loungers, parasols, and seating, as well as a photo booth in the lobby. Starting in mid-July, weekly DJ nights, featuring guests such as Phil Mison, Eric Duncan, and Nicolas Matar, will be accompanied by a curated cocktail menu. For those who can’t get enough of the partnership, Burberry and The Standard also propose a summer capsule collection ‘for warm days and balmy nights’, with swimwear, sunglasses, and hats available for purchase.

The Standard, Ibiza is located at Carrer de Bartomeu Vicent Ramon, 9, 07800 Ibiza, Balearic Islands, Spain.

Dior at Jumeirah Capri Palace

For the fifth time, Jumeirah Capri Palace, which recently unveiled new suites by Patricia Urquiola, welcomes the return of Dioriviera to its seafood restaurant, Il Riccio. The breezy setting, surrounded by Anacapri’s rocky cliffs and adjacent to the island’s magical Blue Grotto, is now decorated with Dior’s Toile de Jouy pattern and animal statues. Guests can choose to sip limoncello spritzes on the beach club terrace or dine at the restaurant, on dishes such as spaghettino with sea urchins. Meanwhile, a Dior boutique pop-up features a summer-ready wardrobe.

Il Riccio is located at Via Gradola, 4, 80071 Anacapri, Italy.

Dolce & Gabbana at Four Seasons Hotel Taormina

Despite occupying its privileged hilltop position for centuries, San Domenico Palace, Taormina, entered the modern zeitgeist in 2022 after serving as the fictional ‘The White Lotus’ hotel. The property, which was acquired by Four Seasons in 2020, is also a beloved part of the Dolce & Gabbana universe, as the Italian brand has taken over its pool area for a couple of years in a row. The now familiar bespoke Blu Mediterraneo theme, seen across parasols, cushions and towels, seeks to reflect the region’s vibrant seaside blues and celebrates the artistry of handmade Sicilian ceramics. Wallpaper’s fashion features editor Jack Moss visited the activation last month to celebrate Dolce & Gabbana’s ninth collaboration with Mytheresa, describing the experience as ‘a day of sunshine, food and spritzes’. Until the end of the season, guests will also be able to browse an exclusive pop-up boutique offering a selection of clothing and accessories, including some location exclusives.

San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel is located at Via S. Domenico, 5, 98039 Taormina, Italy.

Herno at Phi Beach

The rugged granite landscape of Baja Sardinia provides the perfect backdrop for Herno’s sophisticated take on exploration, travel, and outdoor living. In collaboration with Phi Beach, the Italian brand is showcasing its vision of seaside leisure for the second consecutive summer, lasting through the first week of September. Alongside dressing the exclusive club’s cabanas and deckchairs in sandy, deep brown tones, Herno has also introduced its first fully designed restaurant, Herno Suite. Here, chef Claudio Marenzi presents culinary delights on ceramics inspired by the Erno River, paying tribute to the brand’s roots. With a focus on natural aesthetics and sustainability, bill holders, menus, and coasters are made from natural cork sourced from Sardinia. A selection of ‘open-air accessories’ is available for purchase, including beach towels, tote bags, water bottles, baskets, and hats.

Phi Beach is located at Via Forte Cappellini, 07021 Arzachena, Italy.

Jacquemus at Monte-Carlo Beach Club

As part of a strategic transformation of the area, Monte-Carlo’s emblematic beach club has reopened for the season with a complete redesign of its deck and pool area by French interior designer Dorothée Delaye. Adding a burst of Provençal panache, a sun-kissed collaboration with Jacquemus is underway until 7 October. Inspired by ‘La Croisière’ collection unveiled in Paris in January, the takeover dresses sunbeds, towels, and parasols in banana-yellow, coconut milk, and black stripes. This theme extends to the adjacent Pool Café, which features speciality brews and an Olympic-sized pool, as well as two newly opened Jacquemus boutiques, featuring sketches by Renoir and Matisse on their walls.

Monte-Carlo Beach Club is located at Av. Princesse Grâce, 98000 Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Monaco.

Louis Vuitton at White 1921 Hotel

For the third consecutive year, the Arnaud Donckele & Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton restaurant has returned to the White 1921 Saint-Tropez hotel for the season. Michelin-starred chef Arnaud Donckele and chef pâtissier Maxime Frédéric present a bountiful menu, available for lunch, tea time, and dinner, spotlighting local, seasonal produce and creative twists. Think dishes such as grilled blue lobster enriched by a shiso-infused sauce, or Wagyu beef served in a fragrant bouillon. The restaurant’s interior features natural macramé touches paired with rattan furnishings and tables dressed in seasonal Louis Vuitton tableware. Crockery is adorned with interpretations of the maison’s signature Monogram Flower.

The Arnaud Donckele & Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton restaurant is located at Hotel White 1921, Trav. des Lices, 83990 Saint-Tropez, France.

Missoni at JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa

Nothing embodies summer quite like Missoni’s signature zig-zag motif, a warm-weather staple cherished by many for its cheerful, multicoloured hues and light texture. On the private Isola delle Rose in Venice, the Italian label has established a bijou pop-up store at the JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa, making it convenient for guests to stock up on its beachwear essentials. A serene blend of blue and azure, combined with warm ochres and beige, dominates an exclusive collection of men’s and womenswear, ranging from swim trunks and bowling shirts to bikinis and long cover-ups. This same pattern features in the shop’s sofas and pouffes, as well as the large-scale bunny welcoming visitors. The pop-up is open at JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa until 15 September, with another Missoni Resort Club takeover occurring in Oku Ibiza in the form of a branded poolside lounge.

JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa is located at Isola delle Rose, Laguna Di San Marco, 30133 Venice, Italy.

Alo at Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum

Turkey is familiar territory for Alo Yoga, which launched its first Istanbul brick-and-mortar store last year. This summer, the lifestyle brand has set its sights on the Aegean coast – in particular, Mandarin Oriental Bodrum’s private shoreline, to debut a second boutique, an immersive beach club experience, and wellness workshops. Complementing the oak and pine beach umbrellas are branded cotton towels and seating in an earthy hue, while a customised cart offers refreshments served in coconut cups. Until September, international Alo instructors will lead a wellness programme for hotel guests, including sunrise yoga and pilates alongside sound healing and meditation sessions.

Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum is located at Gölköy, 314 Sokak No.10, 48483 Muğla, Turkey.

Capturing the essence of La Movida Madrileña – a countercultural movement that emerged during Spain’s transition to democracy in 1975 – is as challenging as defining the buoyant creative scene shaping Madrid today. Both resist simple categorisation, united by an unyielding forward-looking spirit. The best way to experience the city’s modern-day zeitgeist is by exploring its next-generation galleries, bold hospitality ventures and disruptive cultural hubs. While the city is justly celebrated for its Beaux-Arts architecture, centuries-old art collections, and vibrant tapas culture, Madrid continues to reinvent itself. Here are 15 things to do to tap into the city’s newfound energy, just in time for those arriving for ARCO Madrid 2026 (taking place 4-8 March).

What to see and do in Madrid, Spain

Where to stay

Four Seasons Hotel Madrid

Four Seasons Hotel Madrid is located next to Puerta del Sol, the city’s geographic and symbolic centre. The 200-room palace opened as part of the elaborate Centro Canalejas project, which involved the transformation of seven historic buildings by Estudio Lamela. Over 3,700 original architectural elements were retained and woven into the new structure. A heavyweight roster, including BAMO, Martin Brudnizki, and AvroKO, rendered the interiors with panache, striking the perfect note between laid-back glamour and glitz. The food and beverage offering is equally layered: Dani García’s flagship restaurant, the sharper, Asian-leaning Isa, and El Patio, a lobby bar built around a sweeping, sculptural staircase. Below it all, a four-level spa – the largest in Madrid – emerges as a retreat within a retreat.

Four Seasons Hotel Madrid is located at C. de Sevilla, 3, Centro, 28014 Madrid, Spain

The Madrid Edition

The Madrid Edition marked a new chapter in the capital’s luxury hospitality scene – more outré and colourful, yet no less detail-driven. Its 200 rooms and suites, some with terraces, showcase the Edition brand’s unmistakable bold, contemporary style. Also present are vibrant food and beverage offerings, which include Oroya, the rooftop restaurant helmed by chef Diego Muñoz. Dramatic contrasts of light and shadow, raw textures, and refined finishes define the property’s visual language. Spearheading the design: founder Ian Schrager, minimalist maestro John Pawson, and Paris-based designer François Champsaur, whose combined genius brings fresh energy to the old heart of Madrid.

The Madrid Edition is located at Pl. de Celenque, 2, 28013 Madrid, Spain.

Where to eat and drink

Club 27 Bar

Nestled in the heart of the Palace Hotel, Club 27 is both an atmospheric haven and a slice of Madrid history. The bar is named after the Spanish movement Generación del 27, characterised by avant-garde forms of art and poetry. Original wood panelling – preserved under heritage protection – wraps the space, while illustrated walls chart a century of notable guests and late-night episodes. Hemingway drank here. So did García Lorca, Dalí and Buñuel. Order the dry martini if you’re a purist, or the La Violetera – a nod to Madrid’s violet sweets – for something more local.

Club 27 Bar is located at The Palace Madrid, Pl. de las Cortes, 7, Centro, 28014 Madrid, Spain

Fu.Ba

A portmanteau of ‘Future Bakery’, Fu.Ba caused quite a stir when it first opened its doors in Chamberí in 2025, attracting a mass of aesthetes drawn in by its minimal interiors and soothing organic forms. Designed by Barcelona-based studio Isern Serra (also behind Jaç Hi-Fi Café), this neighbourhood bakery has the gravitas of a sculptural installation: lime-washed walls, softened edges, and a monolithic steel table cutting through raw quarry stone. Chef Fabián León proposes classic bakery favourites reworked for a health-conscious audience, without compromising taste; a triple treat of no gluten, no additives and no refined sugars.

Fu.Ba is located at Calle de Sta Engracia, 112, Chamberí, 28003 Madrid, Spain

Gilda Haus

Madrid-based Codoo studio may have taken inspiration from Gianfranco Frattini, Nanda Vigo and other 1970s Italian design pioneers, but its interior for this Madrid cocktail bar is perhaps most distinctive for the metallic, high-gloss shade of pearl orange that floods its floor, walls and ceiling. Complemented by mirrored surfaces and touches of electric blue, the space is vivid, voluminous and seductive, its decoration celebrating functional urban design, from the office-style tube lighting to the stainless steel furniture, while carpeted floors and velvet curtains add a warmer touch. AR

Gilda Haus is located at C. de San Mateo, 6, 28004 Madrid, Spain.

Mo de Movimiento

Bringing a flavour of environmental consciousness to Madrid’s dining scene, the Lucas Muñoz-designed Mo de Movimiento focuses on adaptive reuse and sustainable energy. The upcycled interiors include lighting pieces recovered from junkyards and seating forged from rubble and wood reclaimed during the site’s renovation. A low-consumption temperature system uses water-filled terracotta pots to cool the air, while energy from the kitchen is reused for underfloor heating during colder months. AR

Mo de Movimiento is located at C. de Espronceda, 34, 28003 Madrid, Spain.

Restaurante Ferretería

As its name suggests, Restaurante Ferretería occupies the bones of a former hardware store – long-time neighbours might remember running errands here once upon a time. Local studio A-Cero redesigned the venue with the utmost respect for its past, repurposing most of the old inventory and antiques, including cabinets, counters, a cash drawer and memorabilia (old recipes, Spanish peseta banknotes, and photographs). While the upstairs area is perfect for a midday vermú, a formal dining room sits in the basement under former coal vaults. The result is a kooky, cocooning haunt where traditional cooking has global inflexions. Don’t miss the cecina de león (cured beef) croquette with a ‘snow’ of parmesan, or the confited suckling pig, served with chestnut purée and braised pineapple.

Restaurante Ferretería is located at C. de Atocha, 57, Centro, 28012 Madrid, Spain

SDD2

Experimental sharing plates are served in this startling environment that mixes the energy of a science lab and a slaughterhouse, with its white polythene counters, freezer-style lighting and multicoloured industrial boxes in the ceiling. Besides raw tuna jerky, aubergine with eel or cockles with seaweed, cuts of veal and Iberian pork go well with the display of meat hooks and butcher’s knives. The owners also recently opened Sala Cero – a severe, stainless steel dining space designed with Madrid-based studios Yyplusplus and Caliper. AR

SDD2 is located at CC. de la Virgen de los Peligros, 8, 28013 Madrid, Spain.

What to do

Albarrán Bourdais

Housed in a former Loewe atelier dating back to the 1920s, Albarrán Bourdais maximises the use of its high-ceilinged, multi-level, 600 sq m space to present cutting-edge contemporary exhibitions, with artists often invited to create site-specific installations or immersive experiences. Superflex, Héctor Zamora and Pedro Cabrita Reis have been exhibited over recent months, while a new solo show by Polish artist Angelika Markul – known for her large-scale installations that range from sculpture to video – is open until July 2025. AR

Albarrán Bourdais is located at C. del Barquillo &, C. de San Marcos, 28004 Madrid, Spain.

Cine Doré

Cine Doré is likely one of the most striking neighbourhood cinemas in the world, with residents of Atocha-Antón Martín fortunate to enjoy easy access. This Art Nouveau venue, which served as a set in Pedro Almodóvar’s Hable Con Ella (2002), was originally built in the early 20th century as a ‘socio-cultural’ hall. In 1922, Spanish architect Críspulo Moro Cabeza transformed it into a cinema. After a 26-year hiatus, it reopened in 1989 as the home for Filmoteca Española, the national film archive – since when it has played host to a variety of Spanish and international films in their original versions. Its original brick-orange façade, meanwhile, tells the story of resistance and renaissance of 20th-century Spain.

Cine Doré is located at C. de Sta. Isabel, 3, 28012 Madrid, Spain.

La Capsule spa at Brach Madrid

Found within the bustling arteries of Gran Vía, a moment of calm awaits at Brach Madrid hotel, the Evok Collection's second outpost after Paris. La Capsule spa is a soothing sanctuary that boasts a 20m indoor pool and cutting-edge treatments that marry holistic practices with advanced technologies, including a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, infrared sauna and LED photobiomodulation therapy. The 400 sq m space is a vision of gold and pure white by Philippe Starck.

La Capsule spa is located inside Brach Madrid, Gran Vía, 20, 28013 Madrid, Spain.

Solo Independencia

Expanding on the capital’s golden art mile (the Prado, Reina Sofia and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums), Solo Independencia takes a bold leap into contemporary art. Conceived as an ‘international art project’ by Spanish entrepreneurs Ana Gervás and David Cantolla, Solo is devoted to ‘fostering, supporting, and sharing today’s artwork.’ Its collection spans figurative painting, kinetic sculpture, sound art, new media, and AI creations, forming an otherworldly universe showcasing over 270 artists, including established names such as Ai Weiwei, Takashi Murakami, and Kaws, alongside rising talents like Filip Ćustić, Ana Barriga and Smack. The gallery’s futuristic yet versatile design is the vision of architect Juan Herreros. Also not to miss is Solo’s labyrinthine new art space (Solo CSV) in Cta. de San Vicente, where there’s more than meets the eye in every corner.

Solo Independecia is located at Pl. de la Independencia, 5, 28001 Madrid, Spain

The Spanish Cultural Heritage Institute

On Madrid’s outskirts, the Spanish Cultural Heritage Institute is one of the country’s most significant works of contemporary architecture. Completed in the late 1960s by Fernando Higueras and Antonio Miró, the circular concrete structure is edged with jagged forms that give it its nickname, ‘The Crown of Thorns’. Protected as a cultural landmark, it houses Spain’s conservation and research facilities. Weekly guided visits offer the general public access inside.

The Spanish Cultural Heritage Institute is located at C. de Pintor el Greco, 4, 28040 Madrid, Spain

Where to shop

Galería Canalejas

Moments away from the emblematic Madrid de los Austrias (the city’s old quarter), Galería Canalejas rises within the same grand edifice as the Four Seasons Madrid, where we also recommend booking a stay if you are after unparalleled luxury. Once known as the Palacio de la Equitativa, the new shopping centre was brought to life by the Spanish firm Estudio Lamela, while the sophisticated interiors were created by Parisian studio Carbondale. Over 8,000 square meters of National Heritage façades and more than 16,000 historical artefacts, including art deco stained glass, intricate railings, marble accents, and ornate friezes, were preserved during the development. At its heart, a charming café pays tribute to the traditional kiosks of 19th and 20th-century Madrid. Meanwhile, three elegant floors showcase an array of upscale fashion, beauty and jewellery boutiques, including Hermès, Jil Sander, and Rolex.

Galería Canalejas is located at Pl. de Canalejas, 1, 28014 Madrid, Spain

Wow Concept Serrano

A department store but not as you know it – this multi-brand retail project aims to merge physical and digital experiences for a new generation of shoppers, with desirable, independent fashion and tech labels housed in a visually striking environment. Barcelona-based External Reference designed the original Wow on Gran Vía, while a second, seven-storey outlet in the swish Serrano neighbourhood is the work of Madrid’s Culdesac, who created sculptural shapes, ambient lighting, fluid spaces and modular furniture that allows for versatile displays.

Wow Concept Serrano is located at C. de Serrano, 52, 28001 Madrid, Spain

‘Recycling is a failed system,’ declares Argentina-born, US-based artist Mika Rottenberg from her studio in upstate New York. ‘Nothing really gets recycled, even in New York City, it's a complete disaster.’ This damning verdict underpins Rottenberg’s new exhibition at Hauser & Wirth Menorca, ‘Vibrant Matter’, a direct response to the broken promises of a future that never arrived.

Across two films, drawings and a new series of sculptures, Rottenberg’s exhibition instead ponders what might have been. With an emphasis on the haptic and fluid, Rottenberg toys with the transformation of matter into other states, a reminder, in other words, of everything recycling promised. Yet for all the exhibition’s critique, Rottenberg is eager to make clear that ‘this is not a solution, this is just, what do you do with so much trash?’ Her response? ‘You can do something pretty with it.’

For her new Lampshares (2025), Rottenberg has created brightly coloured luminescent fungi that erupt from walls, ceilings and plinths, or simply lie on the exhibition floor like gnarled reclining figures. Beyond their Grimm fairytale looks, these sculptures embody her interest in alchemical transformation. Combining bittersweet vines, an invasive species that chokes the forests surrounding Rottenberg’s studio, with waste plastic that is collected from the Bronx and East Harlem before being melted and remoulded, these psychedelic, eerily anthropomorphic lamps turn toxicity into an opportunity for reinvention.

Straddling natural and artificial, functional and decorative, grotesque and beautiful, they represent the healing and redemptive qualities of Rottenberg's studio in preparation for this exhibition, where damage is, quite literally, metabolised into illumination.

Shown alongside her two films, Cosmic Generator (2017-18) and Spaghetti Blockchain (2019), the Lampshares echo the same fundamental concern with material transformation and systems of production and consumption. Speaking on their joint presentation for this exhibition, Rottenberg points out that ‘video is light and plastic is fossil fuel, which is ancient light trapped in oil, but it could not get back to the earth and complete the cycle. So making it into a lamp is a way to metaphorically release the light.’

In Spaghetti Blockchain, a three-channel montage exploring how humans process and interact with matter – from potatoes being harvested to antimatter research at CERN (the European Organisation for Nuclear Research) – Rottenberg frames these disparate acts as part of a surreal production chain. Like the oddly seductive yet grotesque Lampshares, the film's heavy use of ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) invites a playful and visceral engagement while carrying the conceptual weight of ecological collapse and overconsumption.

Cosmic Generator similarly eschews clear categories, instead taking viewers on a disorientating and fantastical trip that connects footage from a plastic goods market in Yiwu, China, with the US-Mexico border, in a continuation of the artist's long-running investigation into labour, materiality and global capitalism. By collapsing distinctions between real markets and imagined portals, industrial zones and kaleidoscopic dreamscapes, documentary footage and constructed sets, the film highlights the absurdity of commodity circulation and how capitalist circuits of production and consumption intertwine in invisible and irrational ways.

The destabilising effect of both films is, for Rottenberg, an essential reflection of our times. ‘Our digital existence is very disorientating,’ she says. ‘Diving into social media, you're reading horrible news and you're being pulled into so many different places that are conflicting – so I think it’s a very current feeling.’ In Rottenberg’s art, however, we can find, if not salvation, then a certain respite, an assurance that the chaos surrounding us is part of a timeless circularity. As she says: ‘Transformation is magic, it's like alchemy, and that's what art is about.’

Mika Rottenberg: Vibrant Matter at Hauser & Wirth Menorca until 26 October 2025, hauserwirth.com

Growing up in Madrid’s Atocha neighbourhood, my first glimpse into the rarefied world of luxury came via The Palace Hotel. It wasn’t the grand façade – a heady mix of modernism and Belle Époque flair – that first captured my attention; at that young age, that was beyond my understanding. What stuck with me were the porters draped in long capes, guiding gilded luggage trolleys.

With over a century of history, it’s no surprise the Palace has stories to spare. Guests have included Pablo Picasso, Mata Hari, Federico García Lorca, Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí. Now part of Marriott’s Luxury Collection, the hotel recently completed a four-year restoration by Lázaro Rosa-Violán Studio, a renovation that aims to revive the property's glamour without relying on pastiche.

Wallpaper*checks in at The Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Madrid

What's on your doorstep?

There could hardly be a more privileged Madrid address than The Palace Hotel’s. Located in Madrid’s Centro neighbourhood, the building sits adjacent to the Landscape of Light – better known as the Paseo del Prado and Buen Retiro – granted UNESCO World Heritage status in 2021. Just steps away lies the Golden Triangle of Art, offering effortless access to the Museo del Prado, the Reina Sofía and the Thyssen-Bornemisza. With such surroundings, it’s no wonder the hotel has long been entwined with Madrid’s social and cultural life. Since opening its doors in 1912, it has played host to royalty, intellectuals, artists and the city’s most influential figures.

Who is behind the design?

The original building was designed in 1910 by Catalan architect Eduardo Ferrès y Puig and, at the time, was the largest hotel in Europe. It was the first hotel in Spain (and only the second in the world) to offer a bathroom in every guest room. It was also the first in the country to have a telephone in each room.

More than a century later, Lázaro Rosa-Violán Studio’s brief included the arduous restoration of the façade, lifting layer after layer of paint until the original pigment began to show through. Guest rooms and common areas were fully renovated, preserving original elements and materials while adapting the spaces to modern travellers.

‘The revamped Palace Madrid is designed to be a stimulating space for a new generation of intellectuals and travellers who seek a place to call home – where stories, culture, and conversations flourish,’ shares Lázaro Rosa-Violán.

In that spirit, the hotel pays tribute to its rich artistic legacy and location through subtle details and motifs, such as intricate patterns inspired by the Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid. The material palette favours timeless finishes – rich woods, elegant metals and tactile textiles – while incorporating modern textures to create depth and contrast. The studio also curated the hotel’s art selection, with some pieces drawn from Rosa-Violán’s private collection and others created by his graphic design team.

The room to book

The hotel offers 470 elegantly appointed guestrooms and suites, with views overlooking either Plaza de las Cortes – home to the Palace of the Congress of Deputies – or Plaza Cánovas del Castillo, where the Fountain of Neptune stands. Room categories include Deluxe, Premium, and Palace guestrooms, while suites range from the Palace, Cervantes, Corte, and Neptuno to the crowning Royal Suite. A firm fond of working with natural materials, Lázaro Rosa-Violán Studio employed high-end finishes, such as marble, brushed brass and textured glass. The original bathroom marble – an elegant Navona – was repaired, re-polished and preserved.

The Royal Suite, spanning 1,700 sq. ft. includes a grand dining room, a library with a bar, and a fully-equipped chef’s kitchen. Sculpted marble and rich millwork lend a sense of old-world refinement, while bespoke fixtures, vibrant accents, and contemporary chandeliers bring a modern, palatial feel. Its expansive one-bedroom configuration features a signature headboard, seen throughout the hotel’s suites: a tapestry designed by Lázaro’s own atelier of graphic artists, depicting local landscapes and classical scenes – among them the lush greenery of Casa de Campo.

Staying for dinner?

As Rosa-Violán himself puts it, ‘La Cúpula Restaurant & Bar is undoubtedly the crown jewel of The Palace Hotel – a space we sought to restore to its former glamour, evoking the opulence of the Roaring Twenties.’

Set beneath an imposing stained-glass dome, the menu reimagines Spanish favourites and crowd-pleases under the direction of executive chef Nuno Matos. Among the highlights are inventive takes on the favourites of former guests – such as Pablo Picasso’s twist on the Waldorf salad and Julio Camba’s beloved steak tartare.

In-house guests are invited to join the weekly Epicurean Moment, a Thursday ritual celebrating the diversity of vermouth, each style paired with traditional tapas for a journey through Spanish flavours.

As part of the renovation, the monumental dome – originally designed in 1912 by Eduardo Ferrés y Puig – was painstakingly restored. Comprising 1,456 individual pieces, the dome was entirely dismantled, catalogued, and restored to its original hues. The space has been further elevated with a composition of furnishings that blend classical and Art Deco styles, upholstered in rich, luxurious fabrics.

Where to switch off

Tucked away in the heart of the hotel, the bar Club 27 is where history and hedonism collide. With its original wood panelling protected by the Heritage Commission, the bar channels old-world charm with a twist of lime. Designers mined the hotel’s century-old register books and bar archives to breathe new life into its storied past. This is the spot that earned Hemingway’s praise for its dry martini and drew regulars like García Lorca, Dalí, and Buñuel – now immortalised in a wall sketch. Lining the walls are 54 custom illustrations, each capturing a defining moment from the hotel’s glittering 100-year history. Order La Violetera cocktail for a tribute to Madrid’s traditional violet candies.

The verdict

Grand dame status in today’s hospitality landscape is no easy feat, especially as a new generation of travellers chase edgier, more offbeat destinations. Still, the recent revamp by Lázaro Rosa-Violán offers a respectful nod to history without being stuck in it. There’s a clear effort to preserve the soul of the building while introducing playful, unexpected details. Though Madrid’s luxury scene is shifting, the Palace remains a cornerstone, offering a rich glimpse into the city’s past, and hinting at an exciting new chapter yet to be written.

The Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel is located at Pl. de las Cortes, 7, Centro, 28014 Madrid, Spain.