As a symbol of the 1992 Olympics, Barcelona City Council commissioned a 115-foot open-mesh fish sculpture by Frank Gehry. Two years later, a 43-floor tower with an exterior mesh of heavy metal girders sprang up as if to the sky. It contains a 455-room hotel, with residences above, and after 30 years, it appears as refreshingly young as ever. But even Hebe would have approved - Hotel Arts is, ever so discreetly, undergoing a two-year enhancement. America’s favourite residential design house, Meyer Davis, is hard at work, as is another known for adding sensation.

 

THE ARTFUL RITZ

This is actually a Ritz-Carlton property, managed by the Marriott machine on behalf of the owners, London-based private equity fund Archer Capital. Unlike most Ritz-Carltons, there are few visible signs of the brand. Suite 3016, indeed, is labelled Arts Suite by We Collect. We Collect contemporary art galleries, set up by Enrique del Rio and Amaia de Menaka in Barcelona, Carabanchel and Madrid, link the new generation of Spanish artists with collectors and hanging venues, like hotel bedrooms. Yes, Hotel Arts lives up to its name.

INTELLECTUAL STIMULATION

Measure the size of suite 3,016 by pacing the floor. Get instant exercise by striding 52 metres from one end to the other, going to the salon and to the bedroom via bathrooms and the dining-library space. Yes, there’s a library, a primer to the New York Times best-seller list. This is a hotel for the inquisitive and well-rounded mind.

SKYLINE SPECTACLES

You need time to make the most of Hotel Arts. To discover the gym requires a search round a multi-corner corridor to an elevator with a beach scene cabin interior that’s a wrap-around reminder that glory days are here again. To discover more wow, rise to the 43rd floor saunas, all-wall windows, men for a sunset view, women for sunrise.

BUBBLES AND BITES