inmat arquitectura renovates cehegin wine school in small murcian town

inmat arquitectura renovates cehegin wine school in small murcian town
image © david frutos
all images courtesy of inmat arquitectos

in murcia’s interior, the small town of cehegin contains a historic structure that was traditionally used to make wine. local practice inmat arquitectos was commissioned by the european union to intervene the cellar of the urban winery in order to preserve it and develop it into a school, exhibition space, and museum for visitors to enjoy. the design largely stemmed from the process used in this particular structure to make the wine. grapes were smashed in the private courtyard. the juice ran down canals carved into the ground which eventually poured into long vaulted limestone rooms below grade. the vats were partially embedded within the ground to maintain the correct temperatures needed for the fermentation process, lined up in rows against the walls. much of the layout was maintained to preserve the original function and feel of the space, so the intervention came in the form of glass and steel which sit aside from the rugged textures of the historic construction.  glass ramps lead down to the vaulted areas where a continuing glass floor supported by a steel grid allows visitors to explore the space as if they were suspended above it. 

image © david frutos

the main vault is now used as the primary exhibition space, leading to a more open space perfect for hosting talks or concerts. the kitchen is a more private space where the wine school primarily resides- teaching students culinary skills and wine pairing. continuing through the program, visitors enjoy a small gift shop with special attention given to each detail of the construction. at the lower level, another small kitchen and gallery space can host additional parties.

image © david frutos

image © david frutos

dining area within the vault merges modern steel, wood and glass with the aged limestone walls and ceramic vats
image © david frutos

kitchen area integrated into the original construction
image © david frutos

a contemporary path floats above the dirt floors connecting the various chambers of the cellar
image © david frutos

gift shop
image © david frutos

front entrance
image © david frutos

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project info:

project name: “cehegín wine school”
location (city, state, country): cehegín, murcia, spain
owner: excmo. ayuntamiento de cehegín, murcia-(cehegín city hall- project financed by funds feader, comunidad autónoma de la región de murcia y excmo. ayuntamiento de
cehegín.)
date project completed: 25th october 2013
total square footage: 342,75m2
budget: 274.216.-€
architecture firm name: inmat arquitectura/ jose luis lopez ibáñez
project architect: jose luis lopez ibañez
project: jose luis lopez ibañez, jose maria mariñoso pascual, david martinez ponce, virginia garcia tormo, maria jose garcia morales
project manager: jose luis lopez ibañez
construction management: mohoarquitectos (pablo garcia mora)
municipal technical architect: santos pedro guillamón marcos
archeologist and director of the municipal archeological museum: francisco manuel peñalver aroca
photographer: david frutos
graphics: sr. mentekitchen, octavio galán crespo
lighting consultant: drait iluminación, miguel ángel franco cánovas
wine consultant: pedro martinez fernandez (wine specialist-“nariz de oro” winner)
glass work: cristalería régula
metal work: virman cerrajería, c.b.
electrical work: irluz, s.l.
wood work: gonzález cava, s.l
lighting work: elcom iluminación