We’ve yet to have the pleasure of visiting the city of Bogota, the high altitude situated capital of Colombia. But if opportunity permits, we’re making efforts to stop into Masa, a modern cafe, bakery, restaurant and retail space characterized by its striking triangular cutouts and glowing warm interior.
Illuminated from within, the window cutouts become graphical representations of light shining from above.
Designed by Brooklyn/Bogota-based Studio Cadena ? headed by studio founder and also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Columbia Graduate School of Architecture Planning and Preservation, Benjamin Cadena ? the 7,500 sq. ft. multi-purpose space located in the Bogota neighborhood of Usaquén represents a graphical interplay between architectural fragmentation with the volumetric connections expressed within.
The trio of triangular windows cut across the etched, cast-in-place concrete street-facing wall hint of the three interior spaces within Masa’s tall ceiling confines. The geometric windows compel a voyeuristic response, tempting passerbys to peer, drawn by the prolific presence of warm wood finished walls, terrazzo tiles, and golden swaths of metallic mesh hanging from the ceiling within.

The scale and height of the interior, aligned with strategic placement of greenery inside and out, does a convincing job of simulating the environment of al fresco dining, a service to those who must adapt to Bogota’s unpredictable and ever-changing local cl...