The hidden gem of the Eixample district that Barcelona wants to recover

BarcelonaIt goes unnoticed by many busy passersby, but on Bailèn Street in Barcelona, ​​next to the renovated Consell de Cent street, lies one of the Eixample's most prized jewels: the Masriera Workshop. Nestled between apartment blocks and partially hidden by the vegetation of the front garden, a classical temple rises, presided over by six imposing columns. A strange presence amidst the residential fabric of the most populated district of the Catalan capital. In the past, it was a very important jewelry workshop and one of the city's cultural epicenters. For more than a decade, it has been a closed building. ARA was able to visit the interior of this iconic space, which Barcelona is on the path to restoring.

To understand the importance of this building, a bit of history is necessary. In the Neoclassical style, the temple was built in 1882 by the architect Josep Vilaseca i Casanovas. It was commissioned by the brothers Josep and Francesc Masriera i Manovens, members of a family of artists and industrialists who had trained as painters, writers, industrialists, and goldsmiths. Inspired by the Maison Carrée in Nîmes, they wanted Barcelona to have its own temple dedicated to art. Therefore, during its early years, it served as a workshop for painters and sculptors in the Catalan capital.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the building's appearance began to change. Under the leadership of Lluís Masriera, son of Josep Masriera, the success of the family jewelry business skyrocketed. This led them to move the workshop to the Taller Masriera, which expanded with two lateral wings and a third on a rear plot. The temple ceased to be a detached building. It would be later, in the 1920s, that the Taller Masriera would adopt the other function for which it would become known. A renovation transformed it into a small theater, called Studium, where the Belluguet Company, promoted by Lluís Masriera himself, performed.

The outbreak of the Civil War brought an end to the golden age of this Eixample theater, which, despite resuming activity in 1939, never regained its former glory. In the 1950s, the Catholic organization Centro Social de Actividades Culturales y Religiosas (Social Center for Cultural and Religious Activities) purchased the building and installed a community of nuns from the Society of the Sacred Heart there. In 2009, this community decided to transfer the property to the Pere Relats Foundation. The plan to create a residence did not come to fruition—the building's characteristics made it difficult—and finally, in 2020, the Barcelona City Council—then led by Ada Colau—acquired the Taller Masriera with the promise of developing a community facility.

Today, at the Masriera Workshop, vestiges of all this history can be seen. It seems like a building frozen in time. A copy of The Vanguard From 1975, a piece of furniture remains on one of the seats in the back rows of the theater. The antique modernist furniture also graces the lobby, with its striking electric blue walls. If it weren't for the dust and damage, the theater—with some peeling paint on the walls—looks ready to host a performance, even though none has been staged there for years. In the cupboards, a few objects still bear witness to the nuns' time in the building.

The project of the future

But this frozen image must soon change. The space is to be transformed into a new socio-cultural facility for the Right Side of the Eixample district, housing the new Sofia Barat Library—which will relocate from its current location—restoring the theater/auditorium, and offering a community and neighborhood space. The project responds to a long-standing demand from residents, who have been calling for years for the Taller Masriera to reopen as a facility for a neighborhood where building new ones is difficult. Last May, the Barcelona City Council announced the winning project for the renovation of the Taller Masriera. The joint venture formed by Estudi Länk Arquitectes and DATAAE won the competition with a project that focuses on restoring the original building and giving prominence to the garden. "We want to create a building that is as vibrant as possible, one that draws passersby in," the architects explained in an interview with ARA.

The new entrance will play a key role in this objective. The project envisions transforming the lobby into a new terrace-agora that blurs the line between the street and the facility, allowing the entrance to the Workshop to be visible through the columns. It also aims to conceptually revive the original idea of the building surrounded by a garden. Therefore, the various extensions and additions made to the temple will be rebuilt and replaced with a new, light, airy, and landscaped architecture.

The City Council's goal is to have the final project approved by the end of its term so that the complete renovation of the space can begin in 2027.