BOLD & BOLDER
In 1963, Ricardo Bofill assembled a team of architects, engineers, planners, writers and sociologists who would later form the Barcelonabased Taller de Arquitectura (RBTA). The socially minded Bofill, whose radical aesthetic was inspired by a vision for urban and communal life that challenged the norm and proposed new alternatives to living, has produced a huge body of work, drawing on history and humanity, with a vision for the future that takes into account the past. With a strong influence from Spanish vernacular and critical regionalism, his buildings speak to civic pride and community — bringing people together. A new volume detailing Bofill’s work over five decades illustrates his ground-breaking approach and aesthetic. The Gestalten publication Ricardo Bofill: Visions of Architecture is beautifully illustrated with photographs, sketches and floor plans, providing a visual and narrative journey of his career.
Preferring to work outside of limitations like movements, his focus is on creating spaces that draw on the best of a variety of styles, noting that people prefer to live in historical centres. He sums up the reasons as them being compact, pedestrian, sustainable, ecological and efficient.
With each building unique to place, and with its own method, his projects vary vastly — sometimes simple, occasionally surreal, always dramatic — making him a truly fascinating artist to track. His style reaches from his neo-Moorish beginnings to his neoclassical phase and his recent period, which is close to high tech. We delve into two of his most iconic:
La Fabrica: This striking complex of structures forms the headquarters of Bofill’s company. In 1973, he came across the disused cement factory in the suburbs of Barcelona and envisioned a new future for it. Remodelling it into his head office without disturbing much of the original structure, Bofill reimagined the concept of “home” or “office” ahead of his time. Planting a profusion of vegetation and trees around the imposing complex, Bofill further softened its industrial origins, giving it an almost romantic ruin-like effect where the plants have encroached on the buildings. “The result proves that form and function must be dissociated; in this case, the function did not create the form. Instead, it has been shown that any space can be allocated whatever use the architect chooses, if he or she is sufficiently skillful,” he says.
La Muralla Roja: A shock of colour against the cliffs of Spain’s Costa Blanca, La Muralla Roja (the red wall) might visually be the architect’s most recognisable work, courtesy of strong, imposing geometric forms and a punchy, playful palette (in stark contrast to the blue of the sky behind it). Inspired by the architecture of the Arab Mediterranean, in particular the adobe towers of North Africa, La Muralla Roja is fortress-like. “With this building, RBTA wanted to break the post-Renaissance division between public and private spaces, reinterpreting the Mediterranean tradition of the Kasbah,” says Bofill.
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