Metropol Parasol in Seville by J. Mayer H. architects
J. Mayer H. Architects has delivered a new emblem for the Spanish city of Seville. Set in the city's medieval centre, the new Plaza de la Encarnación, which had been given over to car parking since the 1970s, now has a parasol rising 28.5 metres. An attraction in its own right thanks to its design, it houses shops, leisure and tourism facilities, and the archaeological museum. A gallery of photographs and plans can be found at the bottom of the article.
In this dense urban setting, J. Mayer H. chose to work with his material of predilection, timber. By assembling nearly 3,400 elements using 3,000 nodes, the architect has created a dense yet animated and airy fabric. To protect the timber and alter its appearance, it was coated with two layers of polyurethane. The components were fabricated in Germany by Finnforest.
The various facilities, such as the museum, are located in the base of the building. The square is paved in granite, to help it blend into the urban fabric. The bases of the different columns run on from the ground surface, and it is at a height of four metres that this cladding stops to reveal the timber structure. Broad staircases invite visitors to climb up to the esplanade to discover the play of shadows and the heart of the building.
Visitors can follow a walkway that runs sometimes within the canopy and sometimes above it, taking in the panorama of the city centre as well as the interplay of voids in the structure. Seen from a distance, in contrast with the surrounding small buildings, the structure, which spans 150 by 75 metres, plays the card of lightness thanks to the slenderness and porosity of its canopy. Inside, the metal is clearly visible. This giant mushroom-like parasol offers the people of Seville a new way of seeing their city, as a dynamic, contemporary urban landmark.
Gallery
52 images
- © Fernando Alda
- © David Franck, Ostfildern Germany
- © Jürgen. Mayer H. Architects
- © Jürgen Mayer H., Andre Santer, Marta Ramírez Iglesias