Recreational Park

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Sites of memory · Year: 1906 · Authors: Antonio Pintor y Ocete

On the site now occupied by the central headquarters of CajaCanarias stood the Recreational Park. Built in 1906 following the plans of architect Antonio Pintor, it was the first space in Santa Cruz dedicated to hosting cinematographic shows, although throughout its history it hosted all kinds of activities: theatre, dances, concerts, conference hall and many more. Its promoter was Ramón Baudet, a businessman who later, given the success of the Recreational Park, would open other cinemas in the city.

The Recreational Park was a pavilion of eclectic typology, made of wood and iron with a gabled roof. The main façade consisted of two sections. The first in the form of a marquee topped with a balustrade and supported by wooden columns. The second housed the projection booth supported by the vertical extension of the four central columns of the marquee. It also had three openings with lintel and keystone corresponding to ventilation windows: two lateral for the hall and one central for the booth. The whole was covered by a roof decorated with intertwined motifs made of wood. The building was accessed through three doors that opened under the marquee, artistically decorated with diamond shapes.

Inside, the profuse decoration of modernist elements (vegetal motifs, garlands, etc.) and some maritime scenes painted by the Tenerife artist Manuel López Ruiz stood out. Above the upper part of the stage opening there were various masks, theatre-related faces and several allegories about music.

The Recreational Park was one of the most popular leisure centres in Santa Cruz for much of the 20th century. It hosted not only film screenings but also popular dances, especially during Carnival.

The building was demolished in February 1973 to make way for the construction of the central headquarters of Cajacanarias, now CaixaBank.

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