CaixaForum Zaragoza

The project stems from a double challenge: in the first place, to design a building capable of generating city through its uniqueness and because of the public spaces it creates; and secondly, to design a building that connects visitors with distant perspectives but that,
at the same time, offers introspection in the exhibition halls. That is, it should generate city and make us feel part of it as dwellers.

To face this double objective, the project lifts the halls to free up the ground floor and place there the open and transparent areas of the program: the lobby and the store. The purpose is to create public spaces, to connect the park with the city by making it stretch under the building. Furthermore, this space is lit up at night with the drawings created by the perforated sheet, asserting its presence as cultural building devoted to the city.

A partially buried garden below the hall functions as auditorium exit, but it can also serve as an anteroom and outdoor catering area. In this way, the auditorium, placed underground and accessible from the lobby, is directly connected to the city through the garden.

The two suspended halls face one another on different levels, so when exiting one of them the city can be seen beneath the other. We think that there should be breakout spaces between galleries, spaces where visitors can clear their minds between one exhibition and the next. For this reason the halls are connected by escalators and paths that offer faraway views.

The cafeteria and restaurant are at the top of the building, enjoying city vistas. On the opposite side, the difference in height between halls generates a terrace-bar that extends the indoor restaurant, offering views of the Ranillas meander and the Expo Zaragoza grounds.