Location Teruel (Spain)
Client General Council of Aragón
Area 3.500 m²
Year 2008
Status Completed-Built
Typology Urbanism
Photography Adrià Goula, Duccio Malagamba
Team Fermín Vázquez, Agustín Miranda, Pedro Baltar, Sebastián Khourian, María Barbeito, Ana Caffaro, Leyre Ciriza, Ángel Corsino, Pedro García, Pablo Garrido, Gustavo Gaudeoso, Guillermo Gutiérrez, Markus Jacobi, Paulo Moreira, Magdalena Ostornol, Javier Piedra, Andrea Rodríguez, Marta Sorribes, Alesandro Zanchetta
Plaza del Torico, the core of Teruel’s old district, fulfills a dual role as a distribution space for pedestrian flows and a place for leisure. The redevelopment of the square delicately superimposes a thin contemporary layer on the historic centre of a city with hundreds of years of accumulated heritage, with a valuable, identifiable trace left by each period.
The basis of the project is a flagstone paving system with an encrusted pattern of luminescent lines that creates a tenuous ambiance. This pattern is inspired by the natural slopes where rainwater flows down and is translated to “force lines” that branch out and rotate when obstacles are encountered. The renovation work is supplemented with carefully designed general lighting for the surrounding buildings and the recovery of the underground water cisterns for use as an exhibition hall with a new visitor entrance.
The light, considered here as a fluid element, spreads across the square, altered by the presence of above-ground elements —the Torico water fountain— and underground features —the cisterns— where it is halved to highlight the subterranean ambience and its archaeological value in this public space. The intensity, pattern and colour of the light can be regulated to change the atmosphere on festive days. This is an invitation to enjoy a dynamic experience, passing by archaeological elements as well as contemporary artistic expressions in the heart of Teruel.
