I Premio de Arquitectura Miguel Martín-Fernández de la Torre

Castillo de la Luz is a castle that is not only one the most
emblematic buildings in the city of Las Palmas de Gran
Canaria due to its architectural heritage, but a witness of
the history of the archipelago. Located in La Isleta, it was
the place of arrival of the Spanish fleet in the fifteenth
century, when the first fort became the reason of its
existence and its defensive function remained until the
nineteenth century. The years have not only affected its
use and preservation, but also its immediate surroundings:
the ancient coastal fort which used to be surround by sea
at high tide, is now surrounded by the buildings of the Port
of La Luz and the city stretching out towards the tip of the
island.
The oldest section is a small tower built at the end of
the fifteenth century. A few years later, its initial size was
increased until creating a square floor which is found
today. The space between the initial tower and the
perimeter walls was filled in to improve its defence against
artillery. The fort, despite being plundered and set on fire
during the attacks suffered at the end of the sixteenth
century, managed to keep most of its original structure
until it was abandoned and left to the weather in the
twentieth century, and was rebuilt in 1969.
How should an intervention be carried out on such an
important historical building, converting it into a Sea
Museum with the installations and spaces required by
modern museum institutions?
The history of the castle itself became the inevitable
argument for the project. If the space between the outer
walls and the original tower had been kept full of soil for
five centuries, all that had to be done was empty it: this
way, the original fort would be recovered and turned into
the highlight of the new museum. This will give way to
indoor spaces that had always existed, albeit hidden from
sight. The walkway system will be reorganised to make
it appropriate for a museum, creating light walkways
and a new staircase and lift. The recently added elements
that did not belong to the original building will finally be
removed. The new spaces are to be covered with a cement
slab which will be separated from the old tower, leaving
thin gaps through which natural light will flow into the
inside.
More than re-building or restoring the castle, it will have
been emptied. We will have simply made its past visible
hoping that the building, irrespectively of the future
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