This 10-meter-long glass bar with green light is located in a cave in the Botanical Garden of Mallorca, Spain. Its straight
shape and artificial materials (light glass vs. heavy rock) are in sharp
contrast . People can notice it at first glance. At night, the light it emits can illuminate the entire cave entrance. The choice
of green light, which symbolizes plants, aims to generate a new dialogue between nature and artificiality.

The great natural entrance to the Caves of Hams in Mallorca houses a lush botanic
garden. It is in this entrance that the bar is situated and made up of a piece of backlit
glass of 10 metres in length.

The counter of the bar, the most important element of the project, is fitted into a
concrete cavity made up of straight lines, designed to contrast with the organic forms of
the cave and can be closed under a transparent cover.

The bar is built of glass, a material which is the opposite of the heaviness and
opaqueness of rock, and it stands out from its surroundings thanks to the fact that it is
backlit, which also aids any disorientated visitors to find their way to it.

At night, the light which is given out by the bar, aided by the indirect lighting which is
fitted around the rocks of the cave, is enough to illuminate the whole space of the
entrance.

The bar is decorated in Green tones, in consonance with the predominant color of the
abundant vegetation in the surroundings, generating a new dialogue between the
natural and the artificial.

 

Architects: A2architects: Juan Manzanares Suárez & Cristian Santandreu Utermark.
(www.a2arquitectos.com)
Photographer: Sergio Vico.
Client/investor: Cuevas dels Hams.
Address: Crta. Manacor - Porto Cristo Km. 11.5. Porto Cristo, Mallorca.
Place: Majorca Island.
Country: Spain.
Completion date: 2007
Building size: . 182 m2.