Research Paper - Precedent Study | Europe Study Abroad

RESEARCH PAPER CAIXA FORUM, MADRID, SPAIN

New Architecture Intervention: Caixa Forum, Madrid Spain Atharva Ranade

Undergraduate Research Paper | Europe Study Abroad - Precedent Study College of Architecture and Urban Studies Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

Special Thanks to Faculty Heinrich Schnoedt For his support, kindness and time in helping me write the paper.

Henri T. deHahn For providing rich information on site to help form a certain position towards the building

New Architecture Intervention: Caixa Forum, Madrid Spain

Today, working with existing buildings, repairing and restoring them for a continued use has become a creative challenge within the architecture discipline. The process of transforming the building is often called ‘adaptive reuse’ – also known as ‘remodeling’, ‘retrofitting’, ‘adaptation’ or ‘reworking’. Moreover, in contemporary conservation theory and practice, adaptive reuse is considered an important strategy towards conservation of cultural heritage.

Earlier, a pragmatic approach was developed without any intentions of preserving heritage, instead the driving force behind the reuse was functional and financial. A theoretical approach towards adaptive reuse was only established in the 19th century when Eugene Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc recognized adaptive reuse as “the best way to preserve a building is to find a use for it, and then to satisfy so well the needs dictated by that use that there will never be any further need to make any further changes in the building.” (Viollet-le-Duc 156) As a result, during the second half of the 20th century, architects such as Carlo Scarpa, Raphael Moneo, Herzog & Demeuron start to consider historic buildings an interesting challenge and make it an important aspect of their work.

The Caixa forum stands out as a fine example for this modern thinking. The former electricity station dating 1899, is transformed into the Caixa Forum, an art and cultural center. Certain constraints were closely considered by the architects before the adaptive reuse project began at the power station. On a broader scale, the architects had to study the existing building with regards to its context and site situation and further analyze which elements of the power station need to be retained for the adaptive reuse, while which ones would be

Diagramatic study on site

demolished. As a result, three main design strategies were used; typological, theoretical and architectural. In each of the three approaches, there is a constant dialogue between the old power station and the new Caixa Forum Typological: Firstly, the typology and the context

of the structure was examined. The biggest motive behind rebuilding the old power station into the art gallery was due to its contextual position within the city of Madrid. It is situated in the middle of the three most important art locations venues of the city, namely; ‘Reina Sofia’, ‘Thyssen-Bornemisza’ and ‘Prado Museo Nacional.’ The former electricity station speaks of time and transitions

Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum

Prado Museo Nacional

Core 10 Iron

Stainless Steel

Concrete

Brick Veneer

The timeline of materials during the project

CAIXA FORUM

Reina Sofia

N

Re-working the streetscape after the renovation

within the city quadrant. The adjacent buildings have risen taller, with flatter roofs, while the abandoned power station sits on an entire square of the gridded city with lower gabled roofs. The streetscape however, flows together as the red-brown brick connects the perimeter residential housing with the old power station.

Herzog quotes, “the old power station was nice, but it was reflecting

Site context of Caixa forum with regards to the art galleries of Madrid

an old image of Madrid with narrow streets, very remote and unpublic,” (Herzog Beaux) hence Herzog wanted to “free the building to make it visible and make it accessible from the Prado Museum and the Thyssen.”

(Herzog Beaux) As a result, the new building had to go higher, but also into the ground to create more open spaces. Secondly,

there was a constrained site analysis made of the existing square footprint of the power house. Findings showed that the site sloped in the East-West direction. The architects therefore removed the existing foundation of the old building, leaving behind only the exterior brickwork shell. The natural slope helped create a public space which had a stronger dialogue to the main street on one side and the resi-

Concrete slab

W-section girder

Welded connection

Tension

Moment flange

Movement of forces

Tensile member(hanger)

Placement of the suspension column (piloti)

corrugated metal deck W -section beam

Stainless steel panels

Metal ties

Wall section of the piloti under tension

Study of the heirarchy of structure

dential block on the perimeter.

Theoretical: In theory, the architects visualized the Caixa Forum as the architectural expression of the unification of the “underworld’ and the “other world.”

In Herzog’s words, “the elevated platform for public gathering and the triangulated canopy underneath act as the transition zone between the two worlds.” He further states that, he wanted to create a ‘new’ space between the street and the building. As a result, he chopped off the brick building, separating it from its foundation

and by doing this, the strengthened the power station. The appearance of a floating brick masonry wall, showcased the ‘canvas’ on which further architectural interventions can occur.

• Building Over • Building around • Building alongside • Recycling materials or vestiges • Adapting to a new function • Building in the style of

Architectural: Lastly, the architectural approach focuses on the process of strategies applied for converting the significant old power station. Machado in his essay, “Architecture as Palimpsest” presents seven concepts of conversion: • Building Within

Each of these concepts refers to a specific physical intervention. Also, these seven points can be redefined with three broader strategies: •Intervention •Insertion •Installation However, in all the strategies men-

Addition of the structural shafts Existing foundation demolished

Existing site condition (inclined)

Vertical shafts act as columns for the horizontal girders Parellel girders run across the entire structure Hangers under tension drop from the girders Suspended stainless steel triangulated panels Suspended beams run normal to the girders

Concrete slab on grade foundation Insulated concrete slabs Structurall girders

Microscopic metal texture used as a screen Core 10 iron crown placed on top of the masonry structure Veneer brickwork of the old power station Non-structural concrete acts as a skin

Central egress concrete stair speaks about the vertical continuity of the space

The entrance metal plate staircase shows how the triangulated facade flows towards the ground

Vertical shafts Structural beams Structural girders

Structural floor plan showing the uni-directionality of the structural members

A contrast between the two stairs

tioned, the most important and meaningful factor is the original building. It is important to understand and clearly distinguish between what could be inherited from the host building, which parts need to be hidden while which ones need to be glorified when the new architecture intervention takes over the old building.

identity was the removal of the entire supporting base, creating an illusion that the building is floating. This excavation under the triangulated panels makes a welcoming plaza reaching to the main street - Prado and it connects with the neighborhood in back of the formal electric plant. Building construction could then begin into the ground where the auditorium and storage rooms are found.

The strict analysis of the existing building paved a path for the adaptive reuse project. The project worked in phases, where each phase has derived its structural and architectural principles from the existing power station. The old building spoke of what the new architecture was going to showcase in its phase of construction.

Step 1 | The interior elements and components of the old power station were

demolished, as a result, the architect got multiple storeys of an open floor plans. Three vertical members were inserted into the power station. Each vertical shaft acted as an egress route and had a triangular footprint with respect to each other in plan. The three wide shafts became the backbones of the Caixa Forum. These shafts are connected by massive W-section girders and beams that run parallel and have uni-directionality across the entire footprint of the Caixa forum.

Step 2 | Once the upper storeys were secure with three ‘columns’, the first floor and the foundation could then be excavated to form the gently sloping paved plaza that leads visitors into the open and the freely accessible space at the ground level, immediately beneath the superstructure of the building. This unusual intervention and the one that gives Caixa Forum its unique

Step 3 | The reflective metal triangulated ceiling was then dropped from the floor above with the help of ‘pulling hangers’ which suspend from the massive W-section beams. This relatively low-ceilinged area, is used as a shaded meeting place where people can see out onto the surrounding streets.

The Caixa Forum has two staircases, the first one is places inside the largest of the three shafts. It is made of

Structural study on site

light colored concrete and showcases the rigidity and the massive supporting strength of the egress shaft. The concrete stair flights have a texture of continuity as it projects the smooth transitions between the multiple storeys of the building.

The second stair is an assembly of metal sandwich panels. The 4mm thick stainless-steel sheet are backed with synthetic material are bonded onto screed in an almost jointless arrangement. Each of these triangulated panels are partly reflective and give a sense of an opened space.

The staircase is placed in the middle of the low-ceiling height façade

The new windows have an offset with regards to the older grid

and appears to have melted down to reach the ground, thus creating a fifth façade to the structure. The three-dimensional layout of the metal sheet showcases an “architectural manifestation of a natural topography” (Herzog 255) (refer photographs on page 6) Step 4 | After the all the floor slabs and ceiling constructions were assembled into position, the exterior wrapping of the building was added. Concrete walls were poured, and the old brick veneer was re-attached to the host building to revive the old power station. The old windows were filled in with a lighter brick color to establish

a timeline within the brick façade.

Newer glass windows were punctured into the veneer but its placement and sizing was influenced by its inner programmatic space. On the exterior side, the new windows to the match with the existing grid of infilled windows. The size is comparatively obscure, and the window panes are sloped to give an aesthetic ambience from the inner spaces of the building.

Step 5 | The last phase of construction was the metal volume on top which is referred as the crown of the building.

The architects wanted to use a material which resembled brick façade of the power station and hence a

rusted core 10 metal sheeting was selected for construction. Due to its light weight properties and perforated surface finish, the rusted orange metal which helped provide different light conditions at the topmost floor of the Caixa Forum. The cuts into the topmost crown of the building “are an immediate reaction from the roof scape condition of the buildings in the circumference of the Caixa Forum.’ (Herzog 256) In each of the phases of construction, the architecture intervention is in a constant dialogue with the old power station.The structural efforts made by Herzog and De Meuron are complimented by the old power station.

The nature and timeline of the architecture is derived with a mature effort to preserve history and symbolize the importance of re-working with the past to create a better future.

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BirkhaĚˆuser, 2009.

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Structural studies, repairs and maintenance of heritage architecture XII Tuscany, 2011. WIT Press, 2011.

BEAUX ARTS. Caixa Forum - Herzog & de Meuron - BEAUX 2009. 2009.

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