selgascano’s chiringuito café bridges pine forest and sea in china
Between a dense black pine forest and the vast shoreline of Rizhao, China, Chiringuito Café, also known as Coffee and Sea Cafeteria, by Selgascano offers a pause between two natural worlds. Conceived as a transparent bridge between forest and sea, the 690-square-meter structure distills the architects’ signature play with light, color, and permeability into a quiet, reflective space that almost vanishes within its setting.
Three elongated glass rectangles, slightly stepped and aligned parallel to the sea, compose the building, forming a sequence of open, transparent spaces suspended just above the sand. Each of the three volumes is elevated at different levels, rising in 70-centimeter increments from the forest side toward the water. This simple topographic gesture organizes the program of the café while preserving unobstructed views of both the pine canopy and the horizon line. At just 6.8 meters above the ground, the section maintains an intimate scale, framing the landscape. Sliding doors on both sides allow the interior to dissolve entirely into the beach, bringing in the salt air.
all images © Iwan Baan | @iwanbaan
reflections turn architecture into landscape
The client commissioned Selgascano to design a new venue that would anchor this coastal site in China, long cluttered by unplanned constructions. Apart from a new café, the brief called for a reorganization of the area, a visual and spatial cleanup that could restore the link between nature and architecture.
The ceiling and sunshades, crafted from recycled aluminum tubes painted in five colors, extend the chromatic rhythm of the building outward, filtering light and infusing the glass structure with a sense of play and vibrancy characteristic of the Madrid-based architecture duo’s work.
Viewed from the beach, the café nearly disappears, as its glass surfaces reflect the forest and sky until the landscape itself becomes the architecture. Only the soft hues of the aluminum sunshades and the movement of people within betray its presence. As the architects note, they affectionately called the project Chiringuito, recalling the informal beach bars found along the Spanish coast, simple, open-air structures that host seaside life.
Chiringuito Café, also known as Coffee and Sea Cafeteria, by Selgascano offers a pause between two natural worlds
elongated glass rectangles, slightly stepped and aligned parallel to the sea, compose the building
the 690-square-meter structure distills the architects’ signature play with light, color, and permeability
the reflective space that almost vanishes within its setting
a transparent bridge between forest and sea
open, transparent spaces suspended just above the sand
the ceiling and sunshades are crafted from recycled aluminum tubes and painted in five colors
color infuses the glass structure with a sense of play
sliding doors on both sides allow the interior to dissolve entirely into the beach
at just 6.8 meters above the ground, the section maintains an intimate scale
the architects called the project Chiringuito, recalling the informal beach bars found along the Spanish coast
project info:
name: Chiringuito Café
architects: Selgascano | @selgascano
location: Rizhao Beach, Shandong Province, China
site area: 1,200 square meters (12,917 square feet)
total floor area: 690 square meters (7,427 square feet)
principals: José Selgas & Lucía Cano
project team: Paolo Tringali, Ying Zhu, Justo Díaz, Inés Olavarrieta
client: Bailuwan Town Development
photographer: Iwan Baan | @iwanbaan
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