New release
Barcelona. Urban Architecture and Community Since 2010
La Balma in Barcelona, Architecture: Lacol, © Milena Villalba
The new volume in the city series by Edition Detail portrays the fascinating current architecture scene in the Catalan metropolis, where pioneering urban concepts are tested and new perspectives are set for historical structures.
On the roof of La Balma in Barcelona, Architecture: Lacol, © Milena Villalba
The capital of Catalonia is known as a lively metropolis with its own strong cultural character. Life in Barcelona is characterized primarily by constant change – on the part of initiatives, interventions and the adaptation of urban space by the city’s residents. Over the past few years, many surprising projects have arisen that have not only marked the urban sphere and its architecture, but have also supported the vibrant life shared by inhabitants of Spain’s second-largest city.
Urban challenges
How to build in a city where average summer temperatures can reach 30 degrees? How can existing structures in the urban sphere be repurposed, yet remain attractive? What meeting places do people need in their daily lives? And how can architecture present an intergenerational approach to the housing question?
Interior La Borda in Barcelona, Architecture: Lacol, © Lluc Miralles
The new book Barcelona. Urban Architecture and Community since 2010 presents 30 current architecture and urban-planning projects over 300 pages. The projects are documented in photos, texts and floor plans and take up different functions. Schools and community centres are presented, as are museums and residential buildings. All the projects set new standards for the future.
The entrance to La Borda in Barcelona; Architecture: Lacol, © Lluc Miralles
A meeting place for all: La Borda in Barcelona, © Lacol
Cultural heritage
The extent to which the present has to do with the history of a city and its architecture is elucidated by Josep Ricart Ulldemolins, a founding member of Harquitectes, in an interview. This young Catalan architecture studio is known for simple as well as technologically innovative solutions for upgrading existing structures and making them usable in the present.
Barcelona. Urban Architecture and Community Since 2010, 330 pages, 30 projects, numerous illustrations and photos, publishers: Heide Wessely, Sandra Hofmeister, Edition Detail, München, 2023
Barcelona. Urban Architecture and Community Since 2010, 330 pages, 30 projects, numerous illustrations and photos, publishers: Heide Wessely, Sandra Hofmeister, Edition Detail, München, 2023
Further interviews with Anna Ramos, director of the Fundació Mies van der Rohe, and the Lacol architecture collective, provide insight into the cultural significance of contemporary architecture in Barcelona – and in Europe. Essays on current and historical urban development round out the book, which takes readers on a city jaunt beyond conventional tourism and shows them many discoveries in the areas of architecture and urban planning.
The Barcelona book is available at bookstores and directly from the Detail Shop.
Barcelona. Urban Architecture and Community Since 2010
330 pages, 30 projects, numerous illustrations and photos
Publishers: Heide Wessely, Sandra Hofmeister
Edition Detail, München
Languages: German, English
Publishing date: June 2023
Gallery
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