Location Barcelona (Spain)
Client AGBAR Societat General d’Aigües de Barcelona, S.A.
Area 50.906 m²
Year 2005
Status Completed-Built
Typology Offices
Collaborator Ateliers Jean Nouvel
Energy Certificate BREEAM ES
Awards
International Highrise Award 2006, Deutsches Architektur Museum
FAD Awards 2006, “ArqInFad Members’ Opinion Award”
Future Project Prizes 2005:”Offices” Award, by MIPIM & The Architectural Review
“Best of Europe – Colour 2004” Award by Kölnmesse Ausstellungen, AIT & Intelligente Architektur
Quatrium Award 2004, “Most innovative office building”
Finalist of the IX Spanish Biennial of Architecture and Urbanism 2007
Finalist of the FAD Awards 2006
Photography Rafael Vargas
Team Fermín Vázquez, Vander Lemes, Pablo Garrido, Alexa Plasencia, Cristina Algás, Elisabeth Farrés, Doris Sewczyk, Laia Coca, Ana Stakic, Itziar Imaz, Marco Suárez, Ana Bassat, Eduard Miralles, José Alfonso Lorente, Magdalena Ostornol, Raúl Sanchez, Carme Casanovas, Cristian Zanoni, Emma Dunner, Francisco Dulanto, Gaëlle Lauxerrois, Javier López, Petros Babasikas, Takayuki Nakajima, Urtzi Grau, Manel Bermuda, Eduardo Calcerrada, Gustavo Sapiña, Jordi Cunill
The striking geometry of the Agbar corporate office tower responds to the need to generate a recognizable urban landmark with a strong personality, suitable for its preferential exposure in the new Plaça de les Glòries, a space in transformation and of new centrality in the city of Barcelona. With a total height of 142 meters, its 35 floors are distributed following a model of core and outer perimeter bearing, freeing the floors of intermediate supports. The exterior wall is “pixelized” according to a grid of approximately square modules on which the window openings are arranged, configuring a “calligraphy” conditioned only by the punctual accumulation of structural stresses, the flexibility of the offices and solar radiation, which is addressed with a density of perforations in the wall, proportional to the insolation corresponding to the different orientations.
The rapid growth of the enigmatic perforated concrete structure and its mysterious skin initially surprised the people of Barcelona. After only a few years, however, the building has become one of the city’s most recognizable contemporary architectural landmarks, an essential part of any representation of its skyline.
