Catalogo Treku magazine

2 3 T RE K U M A G A Z IN E Z A R A U T Z : T HE P L A C E Zarautz: the place At the south of Atlantic Europe, in the Basque Country, lies a town which brings together the forces of a Europe of frayed seas and green meadows For centuries, the Atlantic Ocean was Europe’s only motorway, the only possible path. It was a sea that provided those towns which rose up on its shores with both food and a thirst for travel. For centuries, the Atlantic has also been a skilled painter who, using very simple ingredients - a sometimes raging sea, virgin beaches and evergreen mountains - has designed not only an iconic landscape, but also a way of life. From this union of the sea and the forest, of water and wood, emerged two of the longest-standing industries of all time: ship- ping and fishing. The Basque Country is one the communities along the Atlantic that has followed, almost by the letter, this script; a community which has always looked upon the sea with respect but also fondness; which has eagerly tapped into its forests’ resources but not overly so. Zarautz is a coastal Basque town located 40 kilometers shy of the French border. It is backed by a small army of mountains and protected by a beach over two kilometers long, well-known by surfers all over the world. In a rural corner of the town lies a discreet industrial area. Here, next to a small stream, is home to Treku, contemporary furniture producers whose history dates back over half a century.