temporary installations transform barcelona's urban spaces during MODEL festival

meetingS, INSTALLATIONS, AND activities in Model Barcelona 2023

The second edition of MODEL Barcelona Architectures Festival transforms Catalonia’s capital urban fabric into a laboratory for architectural experimentation from the 20th to the 30th of April 2023. Focusing on the reformulation of public spaces through the theme of ‘Radical Empathy’ and the significance of urban planning as a means for constructing a more sustainable, fraternal, and fair city, the festival hosts five temporary installations in the historically central area around Parc de les Glòries, a large part of which stands currently under construction.

designboom visits the opening of the ten-day festival, witnessing the city’s makeover into a hub of architectural experimentation. During the ten days, the festival will hold several meetings with associations, organizations, and groups in the city of Barcelona at the festival‘s foundation, and will offer a conceptual and practical platform for all the events enacted, including all the +MODEL activities and interactive installations, in the effort of carrying out transversal and cumulative dialogues around architecture and sustainability.

Mamífera stands between Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes and Glòries | all images by Goroka unless stated otherwise

MAMÍFERA by Equal Saree in Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes

Designed by the Equal Saree team of architects and experts on gender and feminism (see more here), ‘Mamífera’ is a public installation attending to the need for and benefits of collective breastfeeding. A section of Gran Via is turned into a free-access space for breastfeeding or bottle-feeding babies, highlighting one of the feminist movement’s historic demands; life and the collectivization of care. Given that breastfeeding is a vital, key time in the development of life, yet, even today, holds a motive for conflict in public spaces, ‘Mamífera’ showcases the need for introducing a network of care spaces in the city through the construction of a visible, accessible, safe pavilion. The platform forms a permeable, open, and protected wooden frame, equipped and built for experiencing breastfeeding collectively, where gatherings, communal meals, and workshops are held.

the permeable wooden frame protects parents and children from the sun and forms a perimetrical seating

Nomadic Assembly by h3o Architects in Mercat dels Encants

Barcelona-based architecture studio h3o Architects (see more here) and DFMD take over the design of a vibrant installation produced with the market’s ‘Mercat dels Encants’ reused materials turning the public area into a space for debate, dancing, and leisure. Featuring a distinct fuchsia paint, fragmented stepped volumes, angular tables made from repurposed wooden legs, and metallic structures supporting bizarre objects reflecting various periods, economic classes, and styles compose ‘Nomadic Assembly’. The installation aims to produce ‘an egalitarian, accessible space and urban environment that favors dialogue among people, regardless of their origin or social background’. The formed shapes fracture, while the items of furniture from Encants interweave with the pink surfaces generating a ‘mixed identity’ to the project.

the vibrant installation turns ‘Mercat dels Encants’ into a space for debate and leisure | image by Jose Hevia

‘Nomadic Assembly’ features a distinct fuchsia paint, stepped volumes, and metallic structures | image by Jose Hevia

Feral Surfaces by Harrison Atelier on top of Ona Glòries car park

For MODEL Barcelona Architectures Festival, Harrison Atelier (see more here) composes a mycelium structure of fungal filaments that form panels in which pollinating insects can reside. Situated on the Roof of the Ona Glòries car park, the project revises urban planning providing a new perspective that reconciles the well-being of people along with other species in the city. The installation tackles the theme of ‘Radical Empathy’ from a multi-species perspective and reflects on the relationship between living beings and the urban environment. A total of 1,500 hemp mycelium panels form an interwoven net on a slightly elevated platform and provide a nest for solitary bees. 

the installation reflects on the relationship between living beings and the urban fabric

Free Air by Daryan Knoblauch in Pl. de Josep Antoni Coderch

Architect and designer Daryan Knoblauch specializing in technology, performing arts, and nature (see more here), constructs ‘Free Air’ pavilion, a structure for the public collecting NO₂ from the air. The installation made entirely of reusable materials is situated in Plaça de Josep Antoni Coderch, right in front of the Design Museum of Barcelona, and serves as a meeting place to discuss present and future energy issues in the architectural field. The performative infrastructure contributes to Barcelona’s environment through its reflective surface which harvests highly reactive gases, such as nitrous oxides, sulfur oxides, and carbon oxides from the air, and produces photosynthesis when exposed to light. Due to its photocatalytic coated texture, ‘Free Air’ purifies and improves the air condition wherever it is placed, while, also, supporting several gadgets, such as mirrors, solar panels, and water collectors, allowing visible and invisible interaction with its surroundings.

the installation’s reflective surface harvests highly reactive gases from the air

Free Air purifies the air condition and supports several gadgets, such as solar panels, and water collectors

Permanently Temporary by KOSMOS + PARABASE in Gran Clariana

KOSMOS (see more here) and PARABASE (see more here) architectural studios collaborate on the composition of ‘Permanently Temporary’ public structure that resources unused materials found in various warehouses and construction or demolition sites in the city of Barcelona. The installation, located in the new green area of Gran Clariana de les Glòries, imposes new perspectives around the continuous and unnecessary extraction of materials for construction, and the possibility of ecological developments through reusing, recycling, and repurposing of existing matter. The structure consists of stacked cement blocks and scaffolding nets that stretch above Minerva’s existing statue found on-site. The project showcases the potential for circularity as a response to the environmental impact caused by the construction sector.

scaffolding nets stretch above existing elements and stacked cement blocks

MODEL Barcelona Architectures Festival will be held from the 20th to the 30th of April 2023, via initiatives in +Model institutions and organisations, in the area around Parc de les Glòries. Along with the temporary installations, the festival will feature debates, book presentations, performances, free experimental architecture courses, and parallel exhibitions.

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KOSMOS + PARABASE - Permanently Temporary

KOSMOS + PARABASE - Permanently Temporary | image by designboom

KOSMOS + PARABASE - Permanently Temporary | image by designboom

KOSMOS + PARABASE - Permanently Temporary | image by designboom

Daryan Knoblauch - Free Air

Daryan Knoblauch - Free Air

Daryan Knoblauch - Free Air

Daryan Knoblauch - Free Air

Daryan Knoblauch - Free Air

Equal Saree - Mamífera

Equal Saree - Mamífera

Equal Saree - Mamífera

Equal Saree - Mamífera

Equal Saree - Mamífera

Harrison Atelier - Feral Surfaces

Harrison Atelier - Feral Surfaces

Harrison Atelier - Feral Surfaces

Harrison Atelier - Feral Surfaces

h3o Architects - Nomadic Assembly | image by Jose Hevia

h3o Architects - Nomadic Assembly | image by Jose Hevia

h3o Architects - Nomadic Assembly | image by Jose Hevia

h3o Architects - Nomadic Assembly | image by Jose Hevia

h3o Architects - Nomadic Assembly | image by Jose Hevia

project info:

name: MODEL Barcelona Architectures Festival 2023 | @modelfestbcn

artistic director: Eva Franch i Gilabert  

architects: h3o Architects – Equal Saree – Harrison Atelier – Daryan Knoblauch – KOSMOS + PARABASE

location: Barcelona, Spain

dates: 20th-30th April 2023

photography: Goroka | @wearegoroka – Jose Hevia