Plant a forest at the gates of the Sagrada Familia?
Students from the RCR summer workshop venture into greening the basilica's surroundings and creating elevated access points inside the shops.
OlotFriction often arises in the relationship between the Sagrada Família and its surroundings, especially due to the overwhelming influx of tourists, who encroach on the spaces of the neighborhood's residents. Would converting the future entrance through the Gloria façade into a forest help redirect the relationship between the two? This is the proposal that architect José de Villar is presenting as the tutor for one of the groups in the latest edition of the summer workshops on architecture, landscape, and photography organized by the RCR studio in Olot from July 4 to 19. With this proposal, nature becomes "the mediator" between the basilica and the city. De Villar makes this concrete by introducing its surroundings into a more natural topography. "It's about achieving urban comfort by applying how a forest works," says the architect.
In recent years, the urban fit of the Sagrada Família has become a hot topic in the workshop. In addition to the idea of a forest, Alberto Collet's group proposes going beyond the bridge over Mallorca Street to create "a space that allows for the regulation of the flow of visitors and, at the same time, generates an empty space around the temple," as Collet says. This would translate into a larger pedestrian space that could also accommodate other uses. And finally, Carlos Chacón proposes the most transgressive solution to separate visitors from the neighborhood: creating a "cloister" whose route would cover the first floors of the businesses surrounding the basilica, while the residents would continue their lives at ground level. There would be three entrances to distribute the tension of the thousand people who enter the temple every hour.
These and the proposals from previous years will be on display in La Vila in 2026, coinciding with Barcelona's status as World Capital of Architecture. "The exercises are very coherent: the perception of the Sagrada Família from the territory, from the city and the neighborhood," says Ramon Vilalta, one of the founders of the RCR studio along with Carme Pigem and Rafael Aranda. In addition, La Vila will host a virtual reality experience about the space, and the Garrotxa Museum will host a retrospective exhibition of the studio between February and August.
Olot and its landscape
The other two groups in the architecture and landscape workshop are exploring the potential of a network of streets and squares between Olot's old town and the Eixample Malagrida district to restore the city's relationship with its volcanic environment, which has become blurred as it has grown.
While one of tutor Helena Trias's ideas is to "take activities to the streets," beyond cultural facilities, Mauro Turin's students propose a dual analysis of the venues and programs, both objectively and subjectively. Following the RCR's working method, Turin emphasizes working "from the body, through emotions and sensations," to bridge the "psychological gap" with nature. They believe that culture improves the streets and people's lives.