The tree-like sculptures growing out of the tables in this canteen by Spanish architects Estudio Nômada are meant to remind diners of eating outdoors.

The studio drew on the culture and traditions of Galicia in north-west Spain to design the museum shop and canteen for Peter Eisenman's Cidade da Cultura de Galicia.

The legs of the dining tables in the canteen area extend upwards to form stylised trees, which have an aluminium frame beneath the oak exterior and can incorporate additional lighting.

"The idea behind the trees was to evoke, through a contemporary language, the gatherings of people during rural summer festivities," Enrique de Santiago of Estudio Nômada told Dezeen. "To shelter from the sun these types of celebrations take place under the trees' shade along long tables, so we designed the tables by elongating their feet into branches."

Site plan - click above for larger image

The museum shop next door features tall wooden shelving that can be adjusted to accommodate all potential products on sale. The two spaces are linked by apertures carved into the dividing wall and unified by a long counter tiled in the architects' interpretation of "rural Galician façades along the coastline, like for example the tiled façades at the village of Corrubedo."

Floor plan - click above for larger image

Completed in 2010, the Cidade da Cultura de Galicia incorporates a museum, library, archive facility, arts centre and performing arts centre, surrounded by 25 hectares of parkland. You can read our earlier story about the Cidade da Cultura de Galicia here.

Diagram of tree construction - click above for larger image

Photographs are by Santos-Diez/BISimages