1st Prize in Competition.
Its objective was to protect the nearly 40,000 inhabitants of the city of Almería from bombings during the war. Its recovery as a cultural and historical element of undeniable interest is closely linked to its symbolism as a testament to the Spanish civil war. This circumstance, along with its architectural-engineering value, places the shelters as one of the most important works built in Almería during the 20th century, thus constituting one of the most significant elements of the city’s heritage and historical memory.
Its rehabilitation aims to recover a 756-meter-long section located in the city center under the current Paseo de Almería, whose characteristics make it more unique compared to the others: the width of the galleries is greater than the rest and it is equipped with a series of elements that at the time provided a vital service to the people who used them, with a small hospital being the most significant.
The rehabilitation project is divided into two parts: The strict rehabilitation of the underground galleries and new work on the surface for accesses and exits. The main idea of the gallery rehabilitation has been to ensure the safety of visitors without distorting the original spaces designed by Langle, limiting ourselves to an exhaustive and intense cleaning and consolidation of all elements. Thus, the complex system of installations the shelters have been equipped with has been hidden under the slab, and only two steel tubes are visible, referencing the two copper wires that were part of the lighting system. The new elements projected are the access pavilion and a set of three small pieces at the exit.
The access pavilion is a parallelepiped, constructed in concrete, corten steel, and etched glass, which allows for the control and management of all the necessary installations for putting the shelters into use as a tourist resource. The adoption of small-scale abstract elements and forms accompanied by careful execution has been done in the belief that they contribute to its integration into the historical environment where it is located. The building is organized around the wall that emerges from the shelters. The wall thus becomes the element from which the necessary connection between the entrance and the underground galleries is established, providing both elements with the due continuity as a basis for establishing the unity of the project. The concrete wall, which with its thickness and strength protected man from destruction, now appears as the generating element of the project. Its finish reflects the plank formwork used in its construction, just as occurred in the construction of the concrete vault of the galleries. However, the continuity between shelters and pavilion is also entrusted to material and light as the other two generating elements of the project. The pavilion had to appear as a solid element to thus establish the appropriate continuity with the solidity perceived inside the shelters, but at the same time, it had to be transparent and light so that its presence in the historical city was minimal. This duality is reflected in the condition and treatment of the materials. Solidity is entrusted to the texture of concrete, steel, and the reflective condition of the etched glass with an abstraction of the graphics used by Langle in his plans to reflect the shelters, while lightness and transparency are granted by the most inherent qualities of the glass itself. In the pavilion, natural light is introduced through the glass walls and a skylight crowning the roof. The light slides down the wall that emerges from the shelters until it is lost in the depth of the galleries, referring to the original openings that were always open and absorbed the outside light. From inside the building, a panoptic view of the entire environment is achieved, thus contributing to its integration into the place. Special mention deserves the location of the remains of the old Pechina Gate, from the Arab period, under the floor of the pavilion. In this way, the building appears as a large chest that houses two great treasures inside, the shelters and the remains of the Muslim gate, thus becoming the entrance not only to the shelters but to a fundamental part of the city’s history: Islamic Almería.
Finally, at the exit, two elements of pure and elemental geometry stand out, housing the elevator and the staircase independently. Upon exiting the underground galleries, light is perceived through the shelters themselves etched in the glass. In this way, the projected pieces become an allegory of the shelters themselves through which the light of day, the light of life, is reached. In short, the entire action is full of nods to the place in an attempt to link the action to the physical and cultural context, with the utmost respect for the existing and the most stringent rigor.
TECHNICAL SHEET
Project: Almería Civil War Shelters.
Location: Underground, between Manuel Pérez García and Pablo Cazard streets.
Developer: Hon. Almería City Council
Completion of work: 2006
Architect: José Ángel Ferrer
Technical Architect: Manuel Alonso
Internal Collaborators: Javier De Simón, José Antonio Cuerva, Miguel G. Haro and Fernando Mateos
External Collaborators: JG Ingenieros, Secoal Ingenieros, Sondeal G y M
Contractor: Construcciones Tejera
Photography: Jesús Granada
Total Cost: €1,597,240.94
Built surface: 1,800 m2
Publications:
Magazine “Ronda Iberia Magazine”. Spain. September 2011
Magazine “Arte y cemento”, no. 9. Spain. September 2011
Magazine “Arquitectura Ibérica”, no. 24. Portugal. February 2008
Magazine “Catálogos de Arquitectura”, no. 20. Murcia. June 2007
Magazine “Metamorphose 04/07”. Stuttgart. April 2007
Magazine “Pasajes de Arquitectura”, no. 85. Madrid. March 2007
Magazine “Diseño Interior”, no. 182. Madrid. September 2006
Book “The Shelters of Almería, a Space for Life”. Almería. December 2006
