Plaça dels Angels locates on El Raval district in Barcelona.“New Meanings” project is developed in the framework of “materiality, form, and atmosphere”. The experimental project uses “material” as a principal element that shapes the whole project. As a matter of course, the project creates a compatible relationship, which maintains the identity and historical background of the district, with the urban fabric. Since the project is developed in an area that is surrounded by historical buildings, the material becomes stone.
order
The main intention of the project is to provide order in the geometry of the square by enclosing the space through additional structures. In this way, it will be easy to correlate with other plazas in Old Town.Plaça dels Angels will be connected with the adjacent plaza which is called Plaça de les Caramelles through the passageway crossing the convent building. In order to emphasize the location of the new passageway and center of the plaza, diagonals cross the new volumes. Diagonals are emphasized through material and texture differentiation. Diagonals are accentuated through texture and color differences, through “processing” and “raw material”, as if these volumes had already existed and new diagonals crossed the stone blocks and divided blocks into pieces. Limestone is used, and crossed facades are covered with processed stone while other facades are designed as smooth stone surfaces. The stone which is the main material of the urban fabric of Barcelona turns into form and a prominent element in the square. The relationship between existing granite pavement and new stone surfaces will be established in this way.
post-"modernism"
Newly created volumes are designed according to the requirements of surrounding buildings. The extension volume of the church is covered with a new façade made of clear glass. The exising connection between the old façade and square will be kept, but it is also demonstrated old convent building is part of the proposal. Since the proposed continuous volume in front of the convent building and MACBA look at each other, the proposal makes a reference to MACBA.In order to create an architectural contradiction, the façade design of proposed buildings includes architectural elements such as horizontal windows, glass doors, screen facades, and regular geometrical forms. However, these elements are used with “new meanings”.The screen glazing façade creates a second layer in front of the church extension while the diagonal cuts continuous horizontal windows. The short tower in the complex demonstrates the entrance while it also makes reference to the verticality of modernity. The volume standing near the street was preventing the visibility of the MACBA sculpture which is a sign for people coming from the street. In order to keep the visibility of the sculpture and to demonstrate its function, the void is created in the new volume standing alone near the street. This intervention maintains visibility, but also void frames the sculpture as a picture frame. Inside lateral surface of the void is covered with glass in order to create a reflection of the sculpture for people coming from Las Ramblas street. New structures will be an extension of the MACBA building. A small volume is located on the left designed as a library building, while two volumes that tower divide are conceived to accommodate the gallery including the church building. Solely standing volume with the void is designed to have contemporary exhibitions. It is created as a backyard patio for museum visitors.
