The premises are located on the ground floor of a building in the Gràcia district, listed with level C protection (Asset of Urban Interest). Since the 90s, it has worked as a bar with a mixed license. The interior geometry, as in most of the basements of buildings between partitions from the 1900, is in the shape of an elongated tube, with a small patio at the end.
To refurbish the old establishment, the following criteria have been taken into account:
Restitution of the façade: in its original state, the 4.50m high entrance hole was half covered, with bars from an old smoke extraction and a large opaque sign. The proposal eliminates these elements, returning to the original composition and dignifying the entire estate.
Accessibility: the internal unevenness in the access is eliminated, replacing them with a gentle slope, less than 4% and imperceptible, which goes from the entrance to the beginning of the bar.
Natural lighting: the restoration of the patrimonial façade, cutting the original false ceiling, doubles the entry of light from the access. At the end of the premises, the closures of the old office are demolished, and the distribution of the toilets is modified to make two large openings that generate a new entry of much-needed natural light.
Acoustic comfort: given the acoustic requirements of a public place, the false ceiling and part of the sides have been covered with cork panels - a sound-absorbing material - to avoid reverberation and reduce transmission to the neighbours. The plastic qualities of the cork finish are used as the main decorative motif of the premises.
Once these essential criteria have been completed, the project strategy consists of differentiating two sectors within a single space. First, the perimeter envelope is projected, made up of cork and brick cladding, and flooring and walls with a continuous cladding. Secondly, a series of work objects are built with envelopes covered in marble tile, scattered throughout the premises. With their geometries, they will arrange the uses:
Envelope: as we have previously commented, the false ceiling and the walls are covered with cork, an element that evokes fishing materials, taking advantage of its quartering to generate stripes that will set a rhythm throughout the entire premises and where the light bulbs will be placed, floating. In this false ceiling (already existing), a series of holes are made to decongest the premises and accentuate the rhythm towards the interior, seeking a sensation of natural lighting from above. Most of the walls have built-in auxiliary bars, covered with white/blue bevel tile and white tile; the different combinatory motifs end up generating abstract murals that are distributed throughout the premises and which, once again, evoke Andalusian arabesques. Finally, a continuous self-leveling pavement is related to the walls, giving abstraction to the whole.
Objects: two auxiliary tables, the totem, the bar-counter and the table. Each element, with its singularities, gives a different character to each area of the premises, generating different environments for clients who seek different ways of inhabiting it. High stools are designed that relate the cork of the false ceiling with the rest of the premises. Finally, a free-standing sink is chosen in the bathroom hall, which contrasts with the green of the patio. Overall, they are a series of items that are part of the fictitious wreck of a large marble fishing boat.