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Ambiguous Spaces

Versatile, flexible, undefined spaces: towards a sustainable and resilient domestic architecture [Originally published in Marta Poch, ed.: Housing in the…

ambiguous space, Barcelona, dwelling unit, flexibility, housing, IMPSOL-AMB, social housing, versatility, well-being

Intermediary Space and Free Play

[Originally published in de Aedibus 110: CLR Architectes] By their ability to offer a threshold between the city and the…

CLR Architectes, de Aedibus, Free play, Intermediary space, Quart, Switzerland

Dear Readers of Criticalista:

As you may have noticed, the world is undergoing a sea-change right now. The recent swearing-in of the 47th president…

democracy

Climate Change? Here it is:

The floods that hit Valencia on 29 October were unprecedented. In the space of only eight hours, a year’s worth…

climate change, denialism, environment, fascism, floods, News, Spain, Valencia

Forensic Architecture’s Cartography of Genocide

Forensic Architecture recently completed an exhaustive, highly detailled investigation titled “A Cartography of Genocide: Israel’s Conduct in Gaza Since October…

cartography, Forensic Architecture, Gaza, Genocide, Israel, maps, politics, war

A Conversation with Bajet Giramé

[Originally published in Bauwelt 24.2024] This year’s Manifesta is being held for the first time throughout a large metropolitan area.…

architects, Bajet Giramé, Barcelona, Bauwelt, Manifesta

The Barcelona Pavilion-Crematorium

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can give to greatness.” -Oscar Wilde. From the outside, the Crematorium…

architecture, Barcelona, Barcelona Pavilion, cemetery, crematorium, design, Mies, Spain, travel

It’s the Economy (that’s) Stupid

Spain’s economy is thriving this year, with the highest growth rate in the EU and one of the top rankings…

capitalism, economy, homelessness, poverty, Spain

Tabula Gaza

As is well-known, Benjamin Netanyahu studied architecture in his youth, a profession tasked with making the world a better place…

architectural education, Benjamin Netanyahu, Gaza, Genocide, Israel, palestine, politics, urbicide, war

Just another earth brick in the wall

[Originally published in the September 2024 issue of The Architectural Review] Comfort is the reason we construct most buildings. The…

architecture, bioclimatic, climate change, construction, Eivissa, housing, Ibiza, Peris+Toral, renewable-energy, sustainability, The Architectural Review

Which Way, Barcelona?

Gaudí must be rolling over in his grave. A Formula 1 race car burning rubber and making noise before one…

automobile, Barcelona, Formula 1, fossil fuels, politics, urbanism

A Moving Structure

It has won the 2022 City of Barcelona award, the Best Public Library of 2023 Award, the 2023 FAD Architecture…

Biblioteca Gabrial garcia Marquez, cantilever, library, materiality, structure, suma arquitectura

The Pointlessness of The Line

The Line, that gigastructure for Saudi Arabia that has recently been reduced to only a tiny fraction of its initially…

15-minute city, automobile, car-free city, Incremental Urbanism, The Line

Everyday Camouflage in Suburbia

[Originally published in Bauwelt 9.2024] The suburban single-family house has long been promoted as the ideal residential building type; as…

Bauwelt, ca, camouflage, house, Madrid, OF Architects & Ignacio G. Galán, suburbia

Form Follows Footwear

[Originally published in the April 2024 Mediterranean issue of The Architectural Review] Plaza Gomila, a small urban square in Palma…

Camper, El Terreno, GRAS Reynés Arquitectos, MVRDV, Palma de Mallorca, Plaza Gomila

Bike Lanes and Politicians

This is Christians Brygge, a central Copenhagen traffic thoroughfare. It varies between one and two lanes for motor vehicles in…

Amsterdam, automobile, bicycling, bike lane, Copenhagen, corruption, politics, Toronto

Failing the Test of Time

The famed Sant Antoni Library by RCR Arquitectes, Catalonia’s only Pritzker Prize-winner, has been undergoing a complete renovation since September…

Barcelona, Pritzker Prize, RCR, renovation, Sant Antoni Libary, sustainability, time

Greetings from Barcelona

[Last December, Bauwelt Magazine asked their contributors to send them a postcard from their hometown along with a new year’s greeting addressing…

Barcelona, Bauwelt, macba, public space, Raval

A Highly Contested Urban Space in Barcelona

It’s finally happening. A commercial thoroughfare in my neighborhood that is much too narrow, traffic-laden, and overcrowded with shoppers is…

automobile, Barcelona, pedestrians, right to the city, streets, urban design

Making a Difference

[Originally published in DETAIL Magazine 5.2023] Project Gomila is a micro-urban reconstruction initiative by the owners of the Spanish global…

Color, Incremental Urbanism, Micro Urbanism, MVRDV, Palma de Mallorca, Project Gomila

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Criticalista collects Rafael Gomez-Moriana's writings on architecture and the built environment. All photographs by the author unless indicated otherwise.

©2014 Rafael Gomez-Moriana. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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