BILBAO. MAS Context. Issue 30-31

Description of the project by MAS Context

The Bilbao double-issue of MAS Context explores the remarkable transformation of the city and the goals and needs driving it.

Three specific circumstances make it an appropriate moment to focus on Bilbao, to understand its transformation, and look forward to its future. First, in 2017 the Guggenheim Museum will celebrate two decades since opening its doors, and much has happened since October 19, 1997. The city has continued to change since that day, completing many urban, infrastructural, and architectural interventions. Second, the global economic crisis had a local effect on Bilbao, challenging its economic model and the structure used to fund the ambitious projects. No longer a viable structure for the future, the city needs to explore new models to continue its evolution. And finally, the transformation of the Zorrotzaurre peninsula, an area of 70 hectares with a master plan by Zaha Hadid Architects, has kicked off. The first two tangible steps have been the start of the work to open the Deusto Canal, that will turn the peninsula into an island, and the construction of the first bridge, the Frank Gehry Bridge, that connects it to the Deusto neighborhood.  

To provide a comprehensive look at the history and transformation of the city, this issue features contributions by those who have had a direct involvement with it, whether leading the process or closely witnessing it. Most of them local residents, the list includes public officials, urban designers, architects, landscape architects, photographers, historians, and a filmmaker, among others. They provide an invaluable perspective, from the city’s past as an industrial power followed by its steep decline, to the transformation during the last three decades into a service city. It is an ongoing, ambitious, and complex effort to position the city regionally and internationally. Ultimately, we want this issue to provide a relevant tool to better understand the past and present of the city as well as to think about its future and build upon its strengths without losing its identity.

The issue features contributions by architects, urban planners, structural engineers, landscape designers, photographers, filmmakers, and graphic designers. The list of contributors include Ibon Areso, Diana Balmori, Eduardo Belzunce, José Luis Burgos, Cini Boeri Architetti, Carlos Copertone, Juan Luis de las Rivas, Luis Diaz-Mauriño, Patxi Eguiluz, García de la Torre Arquitectos, Juan García Millán, Iker Gil, IDOM, JAAM, James Stirling Michael Wilford & Associates, Koldo Lus Arana, Elena Martínez-Litago, Ruth Mayoral López, Meneo, NO.MAD, Aitor Ortiz, Lucía C. Pérez-Moreno, Fidel Raso, Tomás Ruiz, Juan Sádaba, Diego Sanz, Patricia Sanz Lacarra, Koldo Serra, Alfonso Vegara, Yosigo, Zaha Hadid Architects, and John Zils.

The issue has been designed by Bilbao-based graphic design studio Meneo.