18
the World Of Hospitality
Hotel Vincci Gala
Hotel Vincci Gala Barcelona
T
he Hotel Vincci Gala is a four-star hotel
with 78 rooms, bar, restaurant, meeting
rooms, and various terraces, situated in a
period building in Barcelona´s Eixample
district. The design of the new Hotel Vincci Gala is
marked by two requirements. Firstly, the obligation of
the Monument Protection Department of Barcelona
to conserve both the facade and a large white marble
staircase in the inside of the building and secondly,
the name of the Hotel: "Gala" referring to the wife and
muse of the surrealist painter Salvador Dalí.
Gala and Dalí formed an unlikely pair and similarly,
the project reconciles multiple contrasts between
the old and the new, the discrete the extravagant, the
elegant and the informal. The color gold is the keynote
of this hotel that is repeated in different shades and
applications, both on the external facade and the
interior of the building, combined with organic shapes
and contrasts between light and dark. The main
material is metal in contrast to the stone and marble of
the original architecture.
In addition to architecture and interior design, the TBI
office is also responsible for lighting, decoration and
graphic design which have achieved a complete and
homogeneous design up to the last detail.
Common areas:
On the ground floor the most common areas of the
hotel are located. These are mainly divided into three
spaces: the lobby, the lounge area and the bar, each
of which has its own personality. The spacious lobby
is characterized by the contrast of the large existing
white marble staircase with a darker, contemporary
and stylish interior designed to restage the staircase
and to further emphasize her resplendence.The hotel
bar is situated under the central staircase, forming
a rectangular box fully encased with anodized gold
expanded aluminum panels. A continuous element of
black Corian frames the opening of the bar and forms
a contrast between its organic shape in deep black and
the rectangular gold box.
In the transition to the bar, the pavement changes from
black marble to light oak flooring to create a warm
atmosphere fusing modern with old and elegant with
informal. The lounge area is situated beside the central
staircase. Wooden covered pillars form a barcode
frame a protected and comfortable space with a private
atmosphere.
The restaurant with the breakfast buffet and two
meeting rooms is located in the basement. A flexible
system of mobile partition panels enable the space to
be divided as necessary, adapting it to the required use.
Central atrium:
The central atrium is the heart of the hotel and permits
natural light to sweep through the building. Golden
aluminum chains hang like an enormous veil over the
glass balustrades. Dark linear patterns are integrated
in order to create a singular optical effect. In addition,
strings of LED light have been integrated into the hand
rails making the golden curtain shine.
The unique geometric design of the curtains has been
extended to the doors of the rooms and the patterns
on the flooring in the hallways, creating together
the sensation of a virtual space, characterized by the
superposition of light, transparency, texture and the
golden color.