palau-castell renaissance cloister renewal by el fabricante de espheras

palau-castell renaissance cloister renewal by el fabricante de espheras
photo © milena villalba
all images courtesy of el fabricante de espheras

the starting point for the urban regeneration of the ‘palau-castell de betxi’ by el fabricante de espheras was the attack against the valencian heritage suffered in the decade of the 1970’s. half of the renaissance cloister was lost when it was invaded by two residential building blocks. the revitalization of the monument (protected with the top national rank, BIC) was claimed by several bodies of the valencian society, and supported by the city council during 20 years of abandonment.

ended in july 2014, the proposal is the first of the eight phases of the master plan of the icon. the dividing preexisting wall is used as a support for a mirror that reflected the lost portion of the open area surrounded by gothic arch galleries. the significance of the ground is emphasized by an interwoven pattern of latticework that sifts this relationship between partition and dwelling. above, a repetition of wooden slats highlights the adjacent corridor. the rest of the construction has been reinforced and detailed by steel in the form of I-beams and doorways. it evokes the past plenitude of the building and restores a forgotten urban space that recovers the socio-cultural importance it once had.

cloister mirror
photo © milena villalba

the ‘recovery of the cloister in the palau-castell in betxi’ has been announced as the winning project for interior design of the ASCER tile of spain awards at the 2014 CEVISAMA trade fair in valencia, recognizing the regeneration and the heritage protection of this architecture intervention using a reflective surface and traditional ceramics pavement.  the jury appreciated the conceptual transformation of the cloister’s inner space by using a huge mirrored surface that ‘virtually constructs’ the center of the lost renaissance cloister. with the renewal project, architecture team ‘el fabricante de espheras’ was seeking to salvage the cloister space by installing a traditional terracotta covering. 

team of el fabricante de espheras with the award
(left to right: víctor muñoz macián, eduardo jose solaz fuster, maría amparo sebastiá esteve, pasqual herero vicent)
image © designboom

the mirror expands the space
photo © milena villalba

looking up towards the mirror and wall
photo © milena villalba

cloister archeology
photo © milena villalba

renaissance main access door
photo © milena villalba

gothic arch entrance hall
photo © milena villalba

cloister section

construction detail

latticework detail

plan

site plan

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