CASA GRANDE HOTEL
FRANCESC RIFÉ STUDIO
“There is nothing more gratifying and beautiful than deconstructing a forgotten building to recover the history that underlies it.”
| Francesc Rifé
Looking to escape from the chaos of living in the tourist town of Costa Brava, Mónica and Raül together with their two daughters went in search for their place of sanctuary. They came across the charming village of La Rioja, where they found an 18th century manor house in Grañón. The famous Camino de Santiago, a widely celebrated pilgrim trail in Spain passes through La Rioja. The family decided to convert the manor into a boutique hotel that would comfortably service guests with its 11 rooms, that would offer them a sense of feeling at home.
Casa Grande Hotel exudes a meditative tenure that is quiet and still with an intimate milieu. This meditative quality is completed through its reduced and sober aesthetic as defined by interior and industrial designer, Francesc Rifé. Entering into the hotel reception we find the original stone floors that have been preserved, and which are complimented with natural oak timbers and concrete flooring throughout the manor.
Black accents have been seamlessly applied throughout the hotel; a common theme that is found throughout from the cabinetry to the poplar wood panelled ceiling. It is also found in the facade openings, where 10mm thick blue iron window and door coverings have been used to support and square-off the existing openings that were originally in poor condition and now serve as a second skin. This new fabric has not only become an integral feature to the facade of the building, but also within. The solid pivot doors serve to not only inhibit the light from entering, but also have become a decorative gesture to the manor. The aluminium windows have also been finished in a similar treatment to compliment the blue iron.
Rifé and his team focused on preserving the heritage of the building by restoring the existing ashlar walls. The thickness of these walls also penetrated and absorbed all the sunlight that entered into the building, and therefore offered no light within the space. To solve this depletion of natural light, they applied a light grey tone to the interior walls with a sheen that would not only serve to unify them, but also allow sunlight to become luminous within the space as it would radiate against the surface of the walls.
As guests are welcomed into the hotel through a grand iron pivot door and original ashlar floors, the narrative of the Casa Grande quietly unfolds as they are greeted by the relics of the building. The lobby showcases a beautifully preserved part of the history, where a stone piece that once served on the Catholic altar belonging to the former manor is on display.
Making our way past the lobby on the ground level are the library and television rooms, where guests can rest and enjoy entertainment. There is also the restaurant and bar with its own cellar, serving a menu of regional dishes designed by chef Samuel Diaz that are rich in flavour and not complex, but rather in harmony with the atmosphere of the hotel. Guests are also able to dine outside under the mediterranean sun in the adjacent courtyard terrace which acts as the lungs of the building.
The guest rooms are divided across the two upper levels, where the first level opens up to the first five rooms, whilst the second floor houses the remaining six rooms. The second floor features higher ceiling heights and rooms that have been designed to serve as suites that have larger beds and some with sofa beds. Some of the rooms feature the restored ashlar walls, while others have exposed concrete and brick which have been used as a substitute to rehabilitate the structure. Both these levels follow the same monochrome treatment and aesthetic as presented on the ground level that is devoid of any over-elaborate atmospheres.
The lighting has been carefully considered and curated within these spaces to further communicate the story of Casa Grande Hotel. Starting with the exterior, Campanula lamps by Peter Zumthor have been placed discreetly above the new blue iron facade, which have been used to convey to visitors the care and rationality with which the project has been designed and built with. Within the building, general downlights are integrated for functionality, whilst the second type of lighting embodied within the new design has been curated throughout to highlight the restored surfaces of the former manor, whilst the third type of lighting has been used to set the intimate and warm mood of the hotel.
Through the restoration and conversion of the manor into Casa Grande Hotel, one can see the sincerity that has been applied by Rifé and his team, as what has been revealed is the unadulterated charm of this heritage that is both raw and honest, which offers a warm and peaceful experience for its guests.
PHOTOGRAPHY | DAVID ZARZOSO