The temporary street architecture series “BCN RE.SET” is just around the corner

Architect Benedetta Tagliabue and stage director Àlex Ollé offer their collaboration in the tercentenary commemorative acts with BCN RE.SET, a series of artistic installations on the streets of the city. The idea is to erect a series of temporary architectural installations in public spaces, in particular in the Ciutat Vella district - seven installations which invite reflection on concepts such as identity, freedom and democracy, among others.

Tagliabue and Ollé are both the curators of the project and also the creators of the first installation, El mur de la Ciutadella, which will be inaugurated on the 29th of May in the Parc de la Ciutadella. The piece is based on a steel and concrete construction 67 metres long and 4 to 7 metres high and is conceived as both a reinterpretation of the historic Barcelona city walls and as a symbol of the current city walls, inviting the visitor to both reflect and be entertained. In addition, on the 10th of June at 1.30 pm, there will be a performance by Àlex Ollé with the collaboration of students of the Institut del Teatre and upcoming urban artists.

At 11.30 am, also on the 10th, the remaining six pieces will be inaugurated, all of which were designed by renowned international artists. The Plaça Nova will host the Urbanus piece, La Casa Catalana, an attempt to revive the prominence that the plaza held circa 1714. The library of lost books, by Anupama Kundoo, located in the Plaça de Salvador Seguí, is constructed from four trees of wisdom, the leaves of which are made from recycled books. The piece in the Plaça del Mar represents the concept of Europe through the popular children’s game, hopscotch, and is the work of Alfredo Brillembourg & Hubert Klumpner.

The Plaça dels Àngels will host an installation of 300 black t-shirts by Studio Odile Decq depicting the faces of 300 people who have passed the spot in recent months. Visitors to the Plaça de la Mercè will be regaled with Take my Hand, by Peter Cook and Yael Reisner, an installation that uses civil wedding celebrations to express ideas of individual freedom and human rights. The Arc de Triomf will host Memory Box / House of Memory, by Grafton Arquitechs, and consists of a wooden pavement and a series of ceramic sculptures representing Catalan architectural works of the last 300 years.

All the installations, which can be seen up until the 11th of September, are designed with sustainability and recycling in mind and, once the series finalises, all materials used for the construction will be collected by architect Santiago Cirgueda for use in a variety of social projects around Catalonia.

A parallel exhibition Making of BCN RE.SET, which also opens on the 10th of June, but in the Enric Miralles Foundation, reveals the origin and evolution of the project and will remain open to the public for six weeks.