this installation cuts through a public square in spain with simple yet powerful gestures

‘concéntrico pavilion’ by sauermartins and mauricio méndez

at the edge of the historic center of logroño, spain, locals curiously approach and interact with the impressive ‘concéntrico pavilion’. designed by spanish studio sauermartins and architect mauricio méndez, the site-specific installation merges two geometric pieces — a wall and a circle — that seem to be piercing through a city square in an attempt to transform passersby’s experience of public space. 

all images © josemas cutillas

combining  wall and circle into a theatrical meeting point 

‘the circle acts as a meeting point par excellence, configuring, in this case, a new centrality with the tree as a focal point. anchored to a stone, the circle does not touch the ground; it rises and floats above the square. the wall, in turn, intercepts and supports the circle. its design offers both an opening and a barrier. the installation’s continuous and opaque diagonal walls set up a background for passersby. at the same time, its open ends provide permeability to its overall structure,’ share sauermartins (see more here) and méndez (see more here).

the scale of the ‘concéntrico pavilion’ allows for the welcoming and reception of the public, functioning as both an atrium and a theater. by involving the square, it also provokes the rediscovery of urban relations: history, memory, and craft intertwine in simple gestures that produce surprisingly strong yet ephemeral movements.

ultimately, the project is ‘a manifestation of duality expressed by the constant superposition of contrasts: instability and balance, contemporary and historical, a wall that limits and a circle that receives. the space, open and closed, at once interior and exterior, signals both the heaviness and lightness of our time,’ concludes the team.

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© sauermartins

© sauermartins

© sauermartins

project info:

name: concéntrico pavilion

location: logroño, spain 

year: 2021

architecture: sauermartins  & mauricio méndez

manufacturing: garnica plywood

photography: josemas cutillas

technical drawings: sauermartins

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom