Reuse and transformation. Vallirana 47 building by vora
01/10/2019.
[BCN] Spain
metalocus, RAMIRO PÉREZ TOLEDO
metalocus, RAMIRO PÉREZ TOLEDO
Barcelona-based studio vora was commissioned with the refurbishment of a housing building containing 5 dwellings. A quite anonymous and discreet building, the value of which, sets its roots on the continuity sense of an era.
The refurbishment is based on a strategy of reuse and transformation, acting with the building’s essence in a both continuist and disruptive way, with a playful, yet respectful attitude.
The refurbishment is based on a strategy of reuse and transformation, acting with the building’s essence in a both continuist and disruptive way, with a playful, yet respectful attitude.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
First floor plan. Before intervention. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
First floor plan. After intervention. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
Section. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
Section. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
Ground floor axonometric drawing. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
First floor axonometric drawing. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
Ground floor axonometric drawing. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
First floor axonometric drawing. Vallirana 47 building by vora.
Pavement and ceiling. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Image courtesy of vora.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
Before the renovation. Vallirana 47 building by vora. Photograph by Adrià Goula.
The main idea of this housing building renovation carried out by vora is the hybridization between the new and the old.
An example of this is the use of materials, as the new additions hybridize with the pre-existing in its detailing and ornament. Many materials and elements of the building were reused, "maintaining the atmospheric continuity".
In the words of the architects, the complexity of the interiors "generates visual comfort, deliberately away from the smooth and anonymous surfaces, so the future tenants will feel at home from the very first day".
Description of project by vora
Vallirana 47 is a quite anonymous and discreet building. Its value doesn´t lie within any singular identity, but in the sense of continuity of an epoch. The work consists of the refurbishment of 5 of the 6 dwellings in the building, and the common spaces.
Aroused by the way of thinking of the client “Pontejos (conservation and preservation)”, we brought the project to a high level of hybridization between the new and the old, to which we had never achieved before. We worked with the identity of the building in a way that is both continuous and disruptive, with a respectful and at the same time playful attitude.
The new spatial arrangement is superimposed to the existing one in an expressive way, through friction and displacement. Pavements and ceilings incorporate the order and hierarchy of the original spaces, while the partitions express, at the same time, part of this memory, as well as the transformations made.
The new material additions hybridize with the pre-existing in its detailing and ornament. Many materials and elements of the building were reused, which maintain the atmospheric continuity. Everything that was added, links with this continuity, from the most tactile aspects to the most abstract ones: glazed tiles, application of graphic patterns extracted from the building's grids, wall papers, etc ... In this sensory approach, it was also incorporated the stratification of qualities that characterized the residential buildings of that time, specifically in the detail of some coatings and elements.
Finally, we built a density of layers of perception and information in the interiors, which provides complexity and vibration. Meaningful vibration for those who want to interpret it, which at the same time generates visual comfort, deliberately away from the smooth and anonymous surfaces, so the future tenants will feel at home from the very first day.
More information
Architects
vora - Pere Buil + Toni Riba
Collaborators
Alex Etxeberria, Quim Olea, Lorenz Kraut, Pol Bosch, Veronika Halo. Structural project.- Eskubi-Turró Arquitectes. Building services project.- Quadrifoli. Quotation.- Gerard Codina. Construction management.- Gerard Codina.
Builder
Metric Integra
Developer
Pontejos Conservación y Preservación S.L.
Area
490 m²
Dates
Project.- 2017. Construction.- 2017-2018.
Address
Carrer Vallirana 47. Barcelona, Spain.
Photography
Pere Buil, Toni Riba. VORA
vora is an architecture studio in operation in Barcelona since 2000. It is headed by Pere Buil and Toni Riba, both graduates from ETSAB in 2000. They work in building and urban design, at different scales and typologies, with some forays into industrial design. They combine professional activity with teaching, curating, and cultural activities.
His approach to the design and construction process is based on the abstract and the material. They are interested in reduction and materiality in response to the challenges of architecture. Also because of the traces, traces, and absences as a remnant of memory and its impact on collective identities.
His work has received multiple awards, including the Frame 2020, Surface Design 2020, 2AA 2018, Archmarathon 2014, Ciutat de Barcelona 2013, AJAC 2012, Arquitectura + 2011, and Bonaplata 2007 awards, and has been a finalist or selected in several editions of the FAD, ENOR, Bigmat awards, Spanish Architecture Biennial (BEAU), European Landscape Biennial, Mies Van der Rohe and Arquia / Próxima Awards, among others. It was also exhibited at the Venice Biennale in the Catalan and Spanish pavilions in the 2014 and 2016 editions. In May 2018 they inaugurated their first monographic exhibition “Shared Identities” at the Kolektiv Gallery in Belgrade.
His works with the greatest recognition are: Vallirana 47 (comprehensive reform of a small residential building), the Can Rosés Temporary School, the Ramon y Mar Pavilion (a small domestic extension pavilion), the surroundings of the Born Market, the Juan apartment ( reform of a house) and the Can Ricart Sports Center in El Raval, all in Barcelona; the design of the Nantes chair, a Medical Clinic in Paüls, Rambla Sant Francesc in Vilafranca and the operations yard of the Bank of Spain in Madrid.
His approach to the design and construction process is based on the abstract and the material. They are interested in reduction and materiality in response to the challenges of architecture. Also because of the traces, traces, and absences as a remnant of memory and its impact on collective identities.
His work has received multiple awards, including the Frame 2020, Surface Design 2020, 2AA 2018, Archmarathon 2014, Ciutat de Barcelona 2013, AJAC 2012, Arquitectura + 2011, and Bonaplata 2007 awards, and has been a finalist or selected in several editions of the FAD, ENOR, Bigmat awards, Spanish Architecture Biennial (BEAU), European Landscape Biennial, Mies Van der Rohe and Arquia / Próxima Awards, among others. It was also exhibited at the Venice Biennale in the Catalan and Spanish pavilions in the 2014 and 2016 editions. In May 2018 they inaugurated their first monographic exhibition “Shared Identities” at the Kolektiv Gallery in Belgrade.
His works with the greatest recognition are: Vallirana 47 (comprehensive reform of a small residential building), the Can Rosés Temporary School, the Ramon y Mar Pavilion (a small domestic extension pavilion), the surroundings of the Born Market, the Juan apartment ( reform of a house) and the Can Ricart Sports Center in El Raval, all in Barcelona; the design of the Nantes chair, a Medical Clinic in Paüls, Rambla Sant Francesc in Vilafranca and the operations yard of the Bank of Spain in Madrid.
