Pestana Casino Park

Photographing the Pestana Casino Park was, for me, an encounter with the history of architecture. Designed by Oscar Niemeyer in 1966 — the only testament to the Brazilian master’s genius on Portuguese soil — this five-star hotel rises on a clifftop in Funchal, overlooking the bay and the cruise port. I sought to honour Niemeyer’s bold, curving lines, photographing the façade and the volumes of the building in Madeira’s golden light, and I devoted myself to capturing the dialogue between the modern concrete and the Atlantic landscape that surrounds it.

I went up to record the aerial views of the 15,000 m² of private gardens and the pool that seems to merge with the ocean, and I searched for the perfect angle in which the pool water reflects the hotel’s emblematic structure. Inside, I moved through the spacious lounges, the warm-toned living areas and the spaces where Niemeyer’s signature is felt in every curve. I wanted to convey the sense of lightness and breadth that defines this cultural icon of the island.

Finally, I turned to what makes Madeira unforgettable: the infinite blue of the Atlantic seen from the terraces, the loungers at the pool’s edge, the sunset over Funchal and the leisure moments guests live in this serene setting. I sought to tell the story of a place where architecture, nature and hospitality meet, photographing the Pestana Casino Park as what it truly is: a living masterpiece by the sea.