The Madrid of Anabel Vázquez
Having lived in the city for 25 years, Anabel Vázquez , founder of Laconicum, knows Madrid like a few others. She holds a degree in Information Sciences and has experience in museums such as the MoMA in New York. She has worked as a business and branding consultant, Information Architect and Heritage Manager in Loewe. Also, she has published in more media outlets than she can remember and writes about fashion, hotels and trends “the beautiful side of life”, as she likes to say.
Her way of living aligns with our approach to life: with calm, curiosity, and a love for life’s little pleasures. That’s why this season’s collaboration between INDI&COLD & Laconicum was born in a natural way, like a meeting between two worlds that share the same belief: the beauty of simplicity and well-crafted things.
Today, Anabel takes us through her Madrid, a city full of life, art and places with soul.
I believe that I’ve earned the right to live in Madrid because i make the most of the city. It demands a lot, but it gives back even more. I’ve lived here for 25 years, and I’m still amazed by the life it has on an ordinary Tuesday night, by the stimulating encounters it fosters, and by its vibrant energy. Even if it’s growing even larger, it’s still possible to build your own little city, living life as part of the neighborhood. I try to do that, and I think I succeed.
Sometimes Madrid tires me out, but there’s an antidote for those days; a stroll through El Prado. Any complaint I might have about the city disappears when I’m in the Ribera room, facing the Velázquez, the Fra Angélico or in front of el Descendimiento by Van der Weiden, my favorite painting. It might sound cliché or even a little snobbish, but it’s rigorously true. There are few places as democratic as El Prado.
Rogier van der Weyden, El Descendimiento, ca. 1435. Óleo sobre tabla, 220 × 262 cm. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. Imagen © Museo Nacional del Prado.
I love to stroll with or without a destination. Sometimes I do it though el Parque del Oeste, where I have my secret spot, a kind of stream where I like to go to think or simply unwind. Other times, I walk through Chamberí, the largest neighborhood of the city and where one of my favorite spots for an aperitif, La Mina, is.
I like to eat or dine at Fismuler, which never fails me and where everything works perfectly. You must try el Armando and the gilt-head beam with grapes and almonds. I also love La Llorería, for its creativity and gastronomic delights, but also traditional dishes like Bogotá. And I’m crazy about the Davola pizza at León de Trattoria Popolare.
I’m quite the hotel lover, and we’re lucky that Madrid has raised its game remarkably in the last few years. I like to go to Urso in the late afternoon, a place that I adore (its spa is intimate and delightful) to enjoy a glass of wine alone or with company. It’s perfect for a relaxed conversation. I also love an improvised, or not, at the Mandarin Oriental Ritz, under the dome or a Negroni in Pictura. And if I want to escape close to nature, I go to el Alpino, which is in Navacerrada and is wonderful at any time of the year.
I always say that I´m not a sweet tooth, but then I walk by La Duquesita and I completely give in. I love their chocolate palmiers. Sometimes, I crave a cramique from Aux Merveilleux de Fred and I enjoy it while walking. Also, the truffles from Balbisiana, which are a real temptation and seating in La Mallorquina to have a coffee with a Swiss roll, which has a certain romantic charm. And I’d rather not mention Alma Nomad, or I’ll start salivating. I love everything there.
Fachada principal del edificio de la Fundación Juan March, en Madrid. Fotografía cortesía de Luis García (Zaqarbal), CC BY‑SA 2.5.
More places that I love? The Fundación March has impeccable programming and a library-coffee shop with a lot of personality, and The ICO Fundación, with its expositions of architecture; I never miss one. To go to Formaje, with its cheeses and its history or to visit Loewe and its celebration of Spanish craftmanship.
I like to stroll through Salesas, with its small streets and its charm. You find everything there, the chocolate palmiers that I mentioned before, the ceramics at the La Oficial, the books at Machado, the breakfasts from Hermanas Arce and, of course, INDI&COLD, where I enjoy touching the fabrics and seeing them up close. And it’s there that Laconicum will open its first physical store in November. We look forward to seeing you.
