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El arte en el hotel

ART IN THE HOTEL

Thanks to its incredible location in the centre of Malaga, our charming hotel is surrounded by history, with the Alcazaba on one side and Gibralfaro castle on the other, and the Albéniz cinema close by (in itself, an artistic relic) and surrounded by the most emblematic museums of the city. There is no denying that this hotel on the Costa del Sol is surrounded by art everywhere.

And if that were not enough, you will also find art everywhere inside our charming hotel – pieces of great artistic value cover its walls, its structure, its lift… even under its foundations! Read on to find out what our early 20th century building has in store for you:

Archaeological remains

Given the proximity of the Roman Theatre, just a few metres away from our hotel, before restoration works were initiated, an archaeological evaluation was carried out, as required by current law. This evaluation revealed a thrilling fact: under the foundations of the building, an Arabic wall and its barbican were found, together with remnants of its opus signium – Roman hydraulic features. Since Phoenician times, the surroundings of our central boutique hotel have been the urban core of the city of Malaga, and subject to continuous occupation, from Roman times to the present day. So it is no exaggeration to say that our hotel stands on centuries of the city’s history.

Puede distinguirse perfectamente nuestro edificio en la zona izquierda de la foto. En la explanada que se aprecia en la foto está, hoy en día, el Teatro Romano, que estos momentos se encontraba enterrado bajo la superficie.
On the left-hand side of the picture, our building is clearly recognisable. The open space in the picture is the present location of the Roman Theatre, which was, at that time, buried underground. Needless to say, these remains were duly analysed and are being properly examined and looked after by the prestigious archaeologist Inés María Guerrero, and were therefore not affected by the restoration works in any way.
La virgen de Consolación y Lágrimas en el trono que tallara Luis de Vicente en 1929. Aparece en primer plano D. Antonio Baena, en la misma calle Alcazabilla.
Our Lady of Consolación y Lágrimas on her throne, carved by Luis de Vicente in 1929. Antonio Baena appears in the forefront, in Alcazabilla Street.

The building and the mosaic

Apart from the above mentioned remains, the building in itself is an historical asset.

The building that is home to our hotel in Málaga was built in 1920 by the developer and founder of the Agrupación de Cofradías, Antonio Baena Gómez, assassinated in the Spanish Civil War when the Nationalists took Malaga. The initials of his name, immortalised in a fantastic tile mosaic that decorates the exterior of the hotel’s top floor (and which can be seen when leaving the Alcazaba Tunnel in the direction of the city centre), are a distinguishing element which we have maintained after restoration because of their character and age. This tiled mural decoration, of clear Sevillian style, shows an ingenious design that interweaves characters by means of a chain of diamonds and a thin frieze that powerfully brings to mind the decoration of the benches in Malaga’s Tobacco Factory, also built during the Roaring Twenties.

In addition to this, the original tiled floors have been preserved in the restoration of the building, and these can be seen at the entrance to the building and in different areas of the Batik restaurant in Malaga.

Mosaico histórico de la última planta, que inmortaliza las iniciales del promotor original del edificio que ahora aloja a Hotel Alcazaba Premium, Antonio Baena Gómez
Historical mosaic at the top of the building which immortalises the initials of Antonio Baena Gómez, the original developer of the building now home to the Hotel Alcazaba Premium.

Antonio Gea’s Work

Antonio Gea, the famous Malaga artist, painted some of the works exhibited in our charming hotel, including the splendid lift mural which can be viewed as the lift goes up. Stretching from the ground floor to the third floor, it measures 1.62 m wide and 16.40 m high, and its divided into several sections or scenes, one per floor. This art work took two years to paint and shows different images and characters, among them some of the painter’s friends and relatives can be found, as well as familiar faces, popular scenes and all sorts of people… even animal life is depicted. To quote the artist: “In order to fully appreciate the work, you need to go up floor by floor, making a stop on each. Otherwise, if you go up to the fifth floor without stopping, it is best to gaze at the background colour, and not attempt to identify the characters, as that can make you feel dizzy.”

Another great work of art from Antonio Gea decorates the hotel in the main entrance hall. It’s entitled ¡Compre flores son de olor! ¡Compre sueños son baratos! (Buy flowers, they smell sweet! Buy dreams, they’re cheap!) and, exhibited next to the elevator door, summarises the two years it took to create the mural. As the painter himself describes it: “It’s an invitation to Malaga, to the hotel. It’s a work conceived for standing and gazing at.”

If you are looking for art and many things to do in Malaga, just visit our hotel in Malaga and you will feel surrounded by art and culture.

¡Compre flores, son de olor! ¡Compre sueños, son baratos!, obra de Antonio Gea situada en el portal de entrada de Hotel Alcazaba Premium.
¡Compre flores son de olor! ¡Compre sueños, son baratos!, (Buy flowers, they smell sweet! Buy dreams, they're cheap!), a painting by Antonio Gea located in the main entrance hall in Hotel Alcazaba Premium.
Los murales del ascensor de Hotel Alcazaba Premium, de izquierda a derecha: planta baja, primera, segunda y tercera planta.
Lift mural in Hotel Alcazaba Premium, from left to right: ground floor, first floor, second floor and third floor.

Hydraulic floor tiles

Hydraulic floor tiles are currently experiencing a second golden age. It is not hard to see why. The attractive and eye-catching mosaics and patterns formed by these decorative tiles leave no one unmoved. As a construction element, they stand out for their versatility and durability. Their popularity means that classic hydraulic floors have given way to modern versions in ceramic or vinyl materials and other more economical versions.

However, at Hotel Alcazaba Premium we are committed to the original, the classic and the fusion of styles. All the hydraulic tiles in our hotel are original and have undergone a careful and extensive restoration process to bring back their original shine and character. Few establishments open to the public today preserve these floors and give them the prominence they deserve. When you visit our hotel or its Batik restaurant, don’t forget to admire these floors and how they are combined with the most innovative elements of industrial trends such as microcement.