New Castellana 69 office building by Thomas Heatherwick, in Madrid
28/06/2021.
[MAD] Spain
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
Thomas Heatherwick, Founder of Heatherwick Studio
Project description by Heatherwick Studio
Located close to El Corte Inglés’ flagship store in Paseo de la Castellana, the building area is nearly 15,000 sqm. It will be the first Heatherwick Studio project to be built in Spain.
Demonstrating a solid commitment to the environment and the belief that great design makes more liveable cities, Castellana 69 promotes both social and environmental sustainability. This is embodied in the innovative façade and the central ‘green heart’, provided by a courtyard inside the building, bursting with trees and plants to bring nature into the centre of the workplace and the city.
This approach is amplified by the choice of healthy and sustainable materials, advanced technology and by harnessing natural resources. Solar panels on the building will produce more energy than the building consumes and the building will ultimately become net zero carbon. Furthermore, the amount of embodied carbon used in construction will be a fraction of a typically constructed office building.
Another goal is to humanise the workplace by creating an inspiring and stimulating environment and providing organisational flexibility that responds to society’s demands for new working patterns. The design takes full advantage of the local climate with a seamless flow from indoor to outdoor working and social spaces.
Construction for this office building will start in early 2022 and is due to complete in 2024. The site is the last plot of land in the AZCA area, Madrid’s financial and business hub.
Thomas Heatherwick established in 1994, Heatherwick Studio recognised for its work in architecture, urban infrastructure, sculpture, design and strategic thinking. Today a team of 180, including architects, designers and makers, works from a combined studio and workshop in Kings Cross, London.
At the heart of the studio’s work is a profound commitment to finding innovative design solutions, with a dedication to artistic thinking and the latent potential of materials and craftsmanship. This is achieved through a working methodology of collaborative rational inquiry, undertaken in a spirit of curiosity and experimentation.
In the twenty years of its existence, Heatherwick Studio has worked in many countries, with a wide range of commissioners and in a variety of regulatory environments. Through this experience, the studio has acquired a high level of expertise in the design and realisation of unusual projects, with a particular focus on the large scale.
The studio’s work includes a number of nationally significant projects for the UK, including the award-winning UK Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010, the Olympic Cauldron for the London 2012 Olympic Games, and the New Bus for London.
Thomas is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects; a Senior Research Fellow at the Victoria & Albert Museum; and has been awarded Honorary Doctorates from the Royal College of Art, University of Dundee, University of Brighton, Sheffield Hallam University and University of Manchester.
He has won the Prince Philip Designers Prize, and, in 2004, was the youngest practitioner to be appointed a Royal Designer for Industry. In 2010, Thomas was awarded the RIBA’s Lubetkin Prize and the London Design Medal in recognition of his outstanding contribution to design.
In 2013 Thomas was awarded a CBE for his services to the design industry.