{"id":52314,"date":"2026-07-09T00:13:15","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T00:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/52314\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T00:13:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T00:13:15","slug":"david-chipperfield-nears-completion-on-faro-santander","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/52314\/","title":{"rendered":"David Chipperfield nears completion on Faro Santander"},"content":{"rendered":"

A museum<\/a> building by David Chipperfield Architects (DCA<\/a>) is nearing completion in Santander, Spain<\/a>, denoting Chipperfield\u2019s first museal project in the country.<\/p>\n

The museum is located in the former headquarters of Santander Bank, the historic Pereda Building<\/a>, which dates back to the 19th century.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Pereda Building was expanded in 1923, the year Santander moved in, by Cantabrian architect Ricardo Bastida, and then added onto again in 1961 by Javier Gonz\u00e1lez de Riancho.<\/p>\n

Now, DCA has contributed to the palimpsest by steering its adaptive reuse<\/a>. \u201cArchitecturally, it boasts a complex and multi-layered history,\u201d Chipperfield said, in regard to the Pereda Building\u2019s past.<\/p>\n

\"interiorThe upper levels are expressed in white walls and exposed concrete, washed in natural light. (Juan Baraja)
\n\"roofThe roof terrace faces the Santander waterfront. (Juan Baraja)<\/p>\n

The former banking headquarters will be renamed Faro Santander. It will host \u201crarely seen masterpieces\u201d from the bank\u2019s collection<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The building, located on Santander\u2019s waterfront, will contain more than 1,000 artworks. Guests will enjoy a new cafe, restaurant, and roof terrace.<\/p>\n

The terrace cafe and restaurant will be located on the top two floors. An auditorium and building facilities will be sited in three subterranean floors. <\/p>\n

One whole floor of the museum will be dedicated to the permanent Banco Santander Collection. Another floor will stage temporary exhibitions. <\/p>\n

Space will also be set aside \u201cfor experimentation and discovery for families,\u201d DCA said.<\/p>\n

\"interiorThe envelope is high performing, for sustainability and art conservation purposes. (Juan Baraja)
\n\"archedPale wood flooring was installed in the gallery spaces. (Juan Baraja)<\/p>\n

As a listed landmark on Spain\u2019s register, preservation of the Pereda Building\u2019s features was paramount. The facade, and its signature arch, remain intact. The rounded portal was added in the 1961 renovation to link the existing building with a replica of it.<\/p>\n

All of the floors, down to the basement level three stories down, were replaced by DCA. The new upper levels are expressed in white walls, pale wood flooring, and exposed concrete, washed in natural light.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the renovation, DCA repositioned the arch \u201cas a space of connection\u201d and the building\u2019s \u201ccentral spine.\u201d It forms the main circulation core.<\/p>\n

Noticeable new additions include a spiral staircase made of exposed concrete. The staircase connects the entryway, in the arch, to the galleries. A new lightweight rooftop pavilion, made of steel, was also built.<\/p>\n

\"constructionThe facade was preserved, but the floors were gutted and rebuilt from scratch. (Juan Baraja)
\n\"constructionThe arch was added in a 1961 renovation as a link between the existing building and a replica neighbor of it. (Juan Baraja)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe focused on rethinking the spaces and connections a public building needs, while recognizing that the real significance of the project lies in the institution\u2019s commitment to openness, culture and participation,\u201d Chipperfield said.<\/p>\n

To conserve artworks, DCA deployed an innovative climate-control system, leveraging geothermal energy and thermally activated building systems. It also has a green roof and a rainwater reuse irrigation system.<\/p>\n

David Chipperfield was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2023<\/a>. The architect was recognized by the jury for his contributions to museum architecture, like Faro Santander, that weaves past with present.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Faro Santander has achieved BREEAM Outstanding certification and, according to DCA, received the highest BREEAM rating to date for a museum and cultural project.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

After a nine-year renovation, Faro Santander will open on September 8.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A museum building by David Chipperfield Architects (DCA) is nearing completion in Santander, Spain, denoting Chipperfield\u2019s first museal…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":52315,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[121],"tags":[22502,144,22503,14356,17],"class_list":["post-52314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-banco-santander","tag-adaptive-reuse","tag-banco-santander","tag-david-chipperfield","tag-museums","tag-spain"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52314"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52314\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52315"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}