Snøhetta Builds Gem-Like Subway Stations In Basque Country

A couple of months back, we brought you a lovely proposal by BABELStudio for the metro-station entrances of Donostia-San Sebastián. The plan--cavelike openings that looked as if they had been lifted from the sidewalk like a concrete carpet--didn’t take the competition’s top prize. Now, we present the city’s choice: a gleaming glass-and-stainless-steel faceted canopy by Snøhetta.

The structure, according to the firm, references coral, a nod to the nearby Bay of Biscay, and was designed to convey a sense of openness; the expansive canopy extends below ground to become a glass ceiling. It will no doubt serve its intended purpose of being an easily identifiable icon for the Basque city. We’d be hard-pressed to deny the bauble-licious appeal of Snøhetta’s proposal, but we implore another city to pick up BABELStudio’s quirkier but no less worthy design.