History of the Deusto tiger

An industrial building converted for residential use with an imposing 9 metre tiger sculpture on its tower.

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A bit of history

  • This peculiar manufacturing building located in Botica Vieja in the Deusto neighbourhood has become one of the most popular symbols of Bilbao’s industrial past over the last few years. It was designed by Bizkaia architect Pedro Ispizua Susunaga in 1940 to house the belt factory belonging to industrialist Jesús Muñoz Mendizábal. Muñoz Mendizábal held in this same plot in Deusto a small pavilion that he decided to demolish to build a new building to house his offices, an exhibition space and spaces to rent to a variety of light industries, although by 1940 three of the floors were used by the military administration of the Ministry of Defence.

  • The initial Ispizua project, a small building, was modified over time and extended in terms of floor plan and number of floors until it reached the size on display today. But what really distinguishes and personalises the building is the sculptural flourish on the turret or cupola built in the same corner as the building’s L: an imposing, 9 metre-long concrete tiger by Joaquín Lucarini, a Basque sculptor who assiduously worked on Ispizua’s project.

  • The rest of the building is rationalist, generally characterised by its austerity. It is a serious, industrial building with limited ornamental elements. The few existing are certainly quite remarkable, but they are concentrated on the top floor, especially in the corner and on the façade on calle Rafaela Ibarra.

  • In a deteriorated state due to use and the passage of time, the industrial building has been reconverted into a residential block, its façade having been restored and the roof having been totally refurbished, in addition to the interior having been sectioned off and structured for its new purpose: flats.