Hotel Marqués de Riscal – El Ciego, Spain

World-renowned architect Frank Gehry unveiled his latest creation, the new Marqués de Riscal “City of Wine,” winery, hotel and spa in El Ciego, Spain last fall and in typical Gehry-fashion, the result is a sculptural masterpiece. Coming in at over $100 million, the new Starwood Hotels location was an ambitious renovation of the 139-year-old Marqués de Riscal estate and corresponding City of Wine campus.

The central part of this complex is the building designed by Gehry, which will house City of Wine’s company headquarters and hotel complex. The project, a mix of modernity and tradition, represents Gehry’s act of homage to these vine-covered lands, so much that the building seems to rise out of the earth like a grapevine. An organic canopy of wine-inspired colored stainless steel and titanium unfold like ribbons down the façade of the building acting as a shade against the western sun. The interior of the building does not disappoint either, as the essence of Gehry’s state-of-the-art architecture pervades each room, social area, and passage way.

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