Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua by Batlle i Roig Arquitectura is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2021 A' Design Award Auro in Fuafuaga Taulaga Competition Category.
AuroFuafuaga Taulaga· 2021
Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua
Client: Batlle I Roig Arquitectura
A' Design Award Auro Winner in Fuafuaga Taulaga Category
- 74,897
- Verified Award Winner
- Verify Award Status for #118334
The Design
About Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua
O le Ala Matagofie i tafatafa o Guixeres o se ala savali ma se ala uila na fausia i luga o nofoaga sa fai ma maina o le gypsum i Igualada, Sepania. O lenei ala o se vaega o se mama lanumeamata ua fuafuaina e siomia ai le aai. O le vaega ua maea le fausiaina e 800 mita le umi ma e aofia ai le 5,600 sikuea mita. E tolu vaega tutusa o loo faataatia faatasi e fausia ai le ala. O le ala tutotonu e faia i le oneone granite, e tolu mita le lautele, e faamautinoa ai le faaauauina o le ala. O le ala sima i fafo, e 1.2 mita le lautele, e faaaogaina ai fasi maa e susulu i le pogisa ina ia iloa lelei i afiafi, ma e fai ma nofoaga e matamata ai faatasi ai ma nofoaga malolo. O le alavai togalaau i totonu e faasolo ai le tafega o vai ma taofia ai ni solo laiti o le eleele.
The Recognition
About the A' Design Award Auro
O le A' Design Award Auro na manumalo ai Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua, o se faamaoniga matuā mamalu e tuuina atu i mamanu o le tulaga muamua, matagofie ma maoaʻe. O ē manumalo i le Auro o galuega fou tele, matuā vaai i le lumanaʻi ma susulu e faaalia ai le atamai, le poto ma le tomai o tagata mamanu. E faamoemoeina Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua e avea ma mea fou e matuā vivii, e faatulaga ai uiga fou ma tetele, e tuuina mai ai se tau e leʻi iai muamua. O lenei mamanu na manumalo i le A' Design Award Auro o se galuega ofoofogia, ua faaaloalogia, e aogā tele ma tuleia atu tapulaʻa o le faatufugaga, saienisi, mamanu ma tekonolosi. Scenic Path Along Guixeres Toe Faaleleia o Laufanua e fatuina ai lagona malosi o le manaʻo, faaosofia le tuinanau, faalauiloa le fatufatuaʻi ma faamalosia i tatou.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- The project has two main goals: first, connectivity, achieving the continuity of this global project around the whole city (the green ring). Second, landscape and biodiversity recovery, establishing the necessary elements to generate a new dynamic on the site that will progressively improve its environmental conditions through the use of collected water. In this sense, the proposal creates a typical section with three clearly differentiated strips that adapt to the different situations of the layout, addressing the problems of the site as well as developing its potential.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- 5.600 sqm / 800 meters long
- Tags
- Landscape Recovery, Pedestrian Path, Cyclable Lane, Rest Areas, Viewpoint, Architecture Landscape, Biodiversity
- Production Technology
- The central strip, with the main 3-metre-wide granitic-sand track, guarantees the continuity of the Green Ring. The outer strip is a linear lookout overlooking the city. A 1.2-metre-wide track paved with concrete to ensure the accessibility and using luminescent aggregate to improve visibility during the evening. The layout of this linear scenic viewpoint recognises the principal existing landmarks, vegetation and trees by widening and creating rest areas. The inner strip acts as a plant ditch, to channel runoff and generates a safety strip to stop minor landslips. These same fallen rocks are used to build a sequence of retaining areas to filter and rechannel this water to new points where vegetation has been planted to colonise the place.
- Design Challenge
- The project was born and built during the crisis, for which we had a very small budget available. We were asked just to solve a new path through that location in order to ensure the continuity of the Igualada Green Ring, but the knowledge acquired about the site and its values forced us to take the whole former gypsum mines as our scope of work. We did not want to design a project of a simple path, oblivious to everything observed and its potentials. Our desire was to recover the entire area, historically abandoned, and integrate it into the green and social infrastructure of the city.
- Research
- The proposal’s innovation lies in the result of this process of analysis and synthesis that concludes with the technification of conventional solutions for path construction, in order to accomplish greater performance regarding accessibility, visibility, durability and re naturalization of the environment, with an optimum cost ratio and maximum efficiency regarding environmental footprint.
- Inspiration
- The project is framed within Igualada’s Green Ring, creating a set of pedestrian and bicycle paths as a belt around the city. This new green sustainable mobility infrastructure aims at establishing a network of free spaces, apt for environmentally friendly leisure activities, adapting and recovering, to great extent, currently underused or degraded spaces. In this context, the gypsum mines path implies the adaptation of a 1,65km section, of which 800 meters have already been accomplished.
- Project Duration
- The project, located in Igualada (next to Barcelona, Spain) started in May 2017 and finished in January 2018.
- Operation Flow
- The intervention creates a landmark visible from afar (the viewpoint) that acts as a reclamation for the whole city and encourages the use of space. Also, the path is completed with a number of small living areas strategically placed on the most privileged areas. This section of the path ends in a final observation deck cantilevering over the mountain providing a panoramic view of the Anoia and Montserrat Mountain. The project has had an exceptional reception from the citizens. They flock to stroll and practice sports in their leisure time. This has motivated the municipality to go on with additional segments of the track to continue extending this Green Path around the city.
- Patents
- Copyrights belong to Batlle i Roig Arquitectura, 2020.
- Team Members
- Architect: Enric Batlle
Architect: Joan Roig
Architect: Ivan Sanchez
Architect: Mario Súñer
Architect & Landscape Architect: Livia Valentini
Agriculture Engineer & Landscape Designer: Dolors Feu
Agricultural Engineer & Environmentalist: Yago Cavaller
Building Engineer & Landscape Designer: Diana Calico - Image Credits
- Image #1: Photographer Jordi Surroca, Guixeres (1), 2018. Image #2: Photographer Jordi Surroca, Guixeres (2), 2018. Image #3: Photographer Jordi Surroca, Guixeres (3), 2018. Image #4: Photographer Jordi Surroca, Guixeres (4), 2018. Image #5: Photographer Jordi Surroca, Guixeres (5), 2018.
Video Credits: Stupendastic Films
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