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Architects: Calatayud-Navarro Arquitectos
- Area: 1004 m²
- Year: 2008
Text description provided by the architects. A regular scheme, characterised by excessive site depth and featureless residential buildings, comprises the area of the site. Our site is located between walls, like the others, and is roughly square, about one hundred and sixty square feet. The street does not offer any features that invite our attention.
We propose a representative building in a not particularly favourable location, having its own scale, asserting its representative and institutional quality and benchmarking its suitability within the neighbourhood. The project is structured on three levels: customer services on the first, training on the second, and archiving on the upper level. This proposes a building structure representing a clearly arranged plan. We believe this grouping method favours the scale change we seek.
The configuration is set using two mass structures hosting the most significant parts of the project. Movement between these structures and the perimeter of the constructed building generates a series of interstices set as transitional spaces, which allow us not only to generate both the accesses and the patios, but also to highlight its autonomy.
The double height access is set at street level, and the stairs are at located the back with a courtyard behind. The lower prism hosts the public area. The upper prism has the archiving area. Between these two structures there is an open floor area intended for classroom training.
The metal structure is the basis of the work, predominantly dry. Precast concrete is ised for walls and floor slabs. The joints between elements are achieved by overlapping and splicing. Local stone is used heavily on the floors and on the front of the lower structure. The columns and beams provide precise lines of reference for finishing: flooring, carpentry, lighting, installations, panelling...
The result of the construction process offers a finish different from conventional construction, halfway between institutional and industrial. We believe this bestows on the building the character we intended.