The Cesar Manrique Foundation
The incredible house that’s been created within a series of volcanic bubbles by the island born artist and architect Cesar Manrique never fails to blow visitors away. And is without doubt the most unusual property in Lanzarote.
This ingenious feat of architecture was Manrique´s first major piece of work on the island and perfectly encapsulates his organic approach and desire to create a perfect symbiosis between man, art and nature.
Manrique returned home from America in 1966, just as the tourist industry on Lanzarote began to take off. Aware of the dangers, the well-connected Cesar was determined to avert the threat of his beloved island becoming buried beneath a sea of five star concrete.
He championed an ecological approach towards development, but needed to physically demonstrate both his skills as an architect and what could be achieved by uniting art with nature in order to win over opinion.
So he decided to build a home, using land had that instead been buried beneath a sea of lava.
Manrique discovered his site by walking the lava fields that surround much of Tahiche. The green tip of a fig tree caught his eye growing just above the sea of black volcanic rock and on closer inspection he found that this emerged from one of five large bubbles that had been created within the flow.
Work commenced, the five underground bubbles were interconnected, and by the end of 1968 Manrique´s creation was complete, providing him with the perfect work and display space and Lanzarote with a model and vision for future development.
Manrique´s house basically sits on two levels. The upper floor looks pretty much like a large traditional white washed island home from the exterior but inside massive windows give incredible vistas to the lava fields whilst also incorporating bits of the flow in places, so serving to unite indoor and outdoor space effectively.
Underground, each volcanic bubble – measuring around 5 m (16 ft) in diameter – has been transformed into an elegantly designed room, with its own distinctive character, furniture and colour.
In one visitors find a Zen-like, gently trickling fountain; in another, a palm links the lower with the upper level. The outdoor barbecue and dining area features a traditional grill alongside an open-air pool, which is filled by a waterspout reminiscent of the work of Mexican artist Louis Barragan.
As with all of Manrique´s later creations the planting is impeccable and inventive, creating form and providing splashes of colour that contrast perfectly with the white walls and black lava.
Today, Manrique´s house appears to be “very 1970s” to the eyes of many visitors. But at the time it was considered very progressive by the cognoscenti, if not outlandishly futuristic.
As a result a non-stop stream of glamorous visitors, such as royalty and film stars, beat a path to his front door, all clamoring to see this wonderful new creation.
Unsurprisingly, the house remains just as popular today, welcoming on average some 300,000 visitors a year and now houses the best art gallery on the island as well as the HQ of the Cesar Manrique Foundation, a non-profit body established to promoting his work and artistic philosophy.
