balandret
Architects
Mercader de Indias
Place
Valencia, Spain
Sorolla captured the essence of the Mediterranean like nobody has ever done. The light soaking through the surface of his canvases is the same exact light which today floods the 21 rooms of the hotel Balandret with its windows opened to the blue vastness of the sea and the sky of Valencia. In fact, its name as a direct allusion to one of the most famous paintings of the Valencian artist called El Balandrito (“The little sloop”), which depicts a child playing with a small sailing boat by the shore of a vibrant sea. Just like Sorolla, interior designer Carlos Serra, from the Valencia-based studio Mercader de Indias, brings to the inside of this hotel boutique that special quality of light together with some characteristic elements of the typical Valencian imagery: “The moment I was commissioned the project, I was asked to make it really Valencian. I wanted to give it that air, but deconstructed. All the elements are present, from the earthenware pitcher to the orange baskets, the mosaic, etc., but avoiding what might seem too typical”.
The hotel is located at the very edge of the promenade so nothing obstructs the magnificent view from the balconies overlooking Las Arenas beach. Lapped by the golden light flowing abundantly through the large window a simple recreation area, formed by a couple of Radial armchairs and a side table with flower arrangement, invites guests to enjoy some rest and meditation. Beyond the glass, in Cinemascope, the palm trees, the gleaming white stripe of sand and the ever changing sea sprinkled with sailboats. Evoking all the sensations Sorolla was capable of expressing with a blow of his brush seems much easier in a place like the hotel Balandret. When you listen to the murmur of the sea, breathe the atmosphere laden with saltpetre and feel the sun on your skin, it is possible to understand, at last, the painter who better captured the joy, ephemeral but brimming, of spending a radiant summer day by the sea. Mediterranean in its pure state. For a reason Traveler magazine included it in the Hot List 2015 of best new hotels in the world.
Architects
Mercader de Indias
Place
Valencia, Spain
Sorolla captured the essence of the Mediterranean like nobody has ever done. The light soaking through the surface of his canvases is the same exact light which today floods the 21 rooms of the hotel Balandret with its windows opened to the blue vastness of the sea and the sky of Valencia. In fact, its name as a direct allusion to one of the most famous paintings of the Valencian artist called El Balandrito (“The little sloop”), which depicts a child playing with a small sailing boat by the shore of a vibrant sea. Just like Sorolla, interior designer Carlos Serra, from the Valencia-based studio Mercader de Indias, brings to the inside of this hotel boutique that special quality of light together with some characteristic elements of the typical Valencian imagery: “The moment I was commissioned the project, I was asked to make it really Valencian. I wanted to give it that air, but deconstructed. All the elements are present, from the earthenware pitcher to the orange baskets, the mosaic, etc., but avoiding what might seem too typical”.
The hotel is located at the very edge of the promenade so nothing obstructs the magnificent view from the balconies overlooking Las Arenas beach. Lapped by the golden light flowing abundantly through the large window a simple recreation area, formed by a couple of Radial armchairs and a side table with flower arrangement, invites guests to enjoy some rest and meditation. Beyond the glass, in Cinemascope, the palm trees, the gleaming white stripe of sand and the ever changing sea sprinkled with sailboats. Evoking all the sensations Sorolla was capable of expressing with a blow of his brush seems much easier in a place like the hotel Balandret. When you listen to the murmur of the sea, breathe the atmosphere laden with saltpetre and feel the sun on your skin, it is possible to understand, at last, the painter who better captured the joy, ephemeral but brimming, of spending a radiant summer day by the sea. Mediterranean in its pure state. For a reason Traveler magazine included it in the Hot List 2015 of best new hotels in the world.
