{"id":4292,"date":"2017-04-14T09:56:53","date_gmt":"2017-04-14T08:56:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/?p=4292\/"},"modified":"2017-04-14T09:57:44","modified_gmt":"2017-04-14T08:57:44","slug":"barcelona-taking-it-outside","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/barcelona-taking-it-outside\/","title":{"rendered":"Barcelona: taking it outside!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Often referred to as \u201copen sky museum\u201d, Barcelona is a true gold mine when it comes to architecture, art and culture. Friendly, welcoming, but also vibrant and lively, every street corner is a source of marvel. SculptureNature prepared a tour for you, almost exclusively outdoors, starting on the heights of Montju\u00efc, through the Mir\u00f3 Foundation and ending facing the Mediterranean with Rebecca Horn\u2019s L\u2019estel ferit <\/i>(The Wounded Shooting Star<\/i>). Enjoy the walk!<\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0Mir\u00f3 Foundation, Jardin d\u2019Escultures and Jardins de Laribal
\n<\/b><\/span>The Mir\u00f3 Foundation<\/a> is undoubtedly an architectural gem that requires to be visited. Built by architect and urbanist Josep Lluis Sert, Mir\u00f3\u2019s Catalan friend, the building is reminiscent of the Maeght Foundation in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in France, which was built by Sert a few years earlier. Wide bright spaces and numerous openings on the exterior make this three-levels building easy to navigate. Mir\u00f3\u2019s work is displayed chronologically, starting on the ground floor and ending on the terrace. The use of materials such as white cement and red clay gives this Mediterranean architecture a particularly intimate and warm feel. The works, and in particular the sculptures, occupy the site as though they were born there. But it is once you step out onto the terrace where you are flooded by the light that you can truly enjoy altogether the splendor of the architectural work, the spectacular city views and the outdoor sculptures. While the sculptures like to play hide and seek because of their strategic placements within the space, visitors can take a rest, observe and dream, maybe. This is a place for contemplation, where architecture, sculpture and nature brilliantly come together.
\n<\/span>Adjoining the foundation, the one-acre Jardin d\u2019Escultures <\/i>hosts a dozen contemporary sculptures under the care of the Foundation. There, you will exclusively find works by contemporary Catalan artists: Tom Carr, Pep Duran, Perejaume, Enric Pladevall, Jaume Plensa, Josep Maria Riera i Arag\u00f3, to name just a few.
\n<\/span>Before you leave, one more surprise awaits: the Lariabal Gardens surrounding the foundation. Inspired by Arabic gardens, a long walk along these luxuriant terraces is an absolute must. They hide fountains, sculptures \u2013\u00a0mostly feminine nudes, flowerbeds suspended along the railings, and ceramics of all sizes, a true haven where one can recharge in the shade of palm trees, acacias and fruit trees.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mir\u00f3\u00a0Park \u2014 Joan Mir\u00f3, Dona i ocell<\/i>, 1982
\n<\/b><\/span>(The park is accessible but currently being restored. End of works scheduled for early 2018)<\/p>\n

Mir\u00f3\u2019s last monumental work, Dona i ocell,<\/i> was inaugurated a few months after his death and overlooks the Mir\u00f3 Park since 1983. This bright and proud seventy-two-feet high sculpture was commissioned by the city of Barcelona to Mir\u00f3 who decided to offer two other works on top of this one: two mosaics, one on the Rambla, and one on the exterior wall of El Prat airport Terminal B (Barcelona). Despite the restoration work, which makes the immediate perimeter of the sculpture inaccessible, we do recommend you circle around the sculpture to fully appreciate it and grasp the artist\u2019s desire to combine masculine and feminine, to play with color and light, to cut out the sky and to let your imagination flow\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

MACBA \u2014 Jorge Oteiza, La ola<\/i>, 1998 and Eduardo Chillida, Mural G-333<\/i>, 1998
\n<\/b><\/span>An irregular banging noise will let you know that you are about to arrive at the MACBA, Barcelona\u2019s contemporary art museum. For the past few years, the Pla\u00e7a del \u00c0ngels, which faces the museum, has been taken over by skaters, at times making it even difficult for pedestrians to walk around. But what a pleasure to see so many people \u201cout doors\u201d! It is a constant flow of performances, choreographies, free movements, soaring into the air\u2026
\n<\/span>Stand facing the entrance and look to the left. On the wall that separates the museum\u2019s grounds from the rest of the city, you will find Chillida\u2019s first monumental mural. Although discreet, the location is key, because this particular wall was, according to the artist, an element of isolation rather than connection between the museum and the city.\u00a0 <\/span>By choosing to place his mural at this strategic spot, he wanted to create an osmosis between the art center and the urban environment.
\n<\/span>On your right, facing the museum, stands Jorge Oteiza\u2019s La Ola<\/i>. It almost looks like a maquette for a skate park if you follow the movement of its geometric forms! The Basque sculptor wanted to create a sculpture that would resonate with Richard Meier\u2019s architecture. A play of shadows and lights, of concave and convex curves, of hollow and solid. <\/span>I always liked how this place resonates, the way it subtly favors internalization while everything around is a show. <\/span><\/p>\n

La Rambla \u2014 Joan Mir\u00f3, mural Pla de l\u2019os<\/i>, 1976
\n<\/b><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>o sap el que em va costar conv\u00e8ncer els operaris perqu\u00e8 posessin de manera irregular les peces\u2026!<\/i> (You have no idea how difficult it was to convince the masons to place the tiles irregularly!) That is what Mir\u00f3 would tell the passerby who would criticize the way the mosaic had been installed in 1976. Second homage to Barcelona, the site might seem uncommon for a work of art. Everyday, thousands of people step on the mosaic located in the middle of the Rambla, a long promenade that connects the Mediterranean to the heart of the city: a welcoming gift to the people who arrive to Barcelona through the sea. <\/span><\/p>\n

Pla\u00e7a del Rei \u2014 Eduardo Chillida, Topos V<\/i>, 1985
\n<\/b><\/span>In the heart of Barri G\u00f3tic, this work of art was purchased by the city of Barcelona in 1986 and then installed on Pla\u00e7a del Rei according to the artist\u2019s will. The medieval setting, the colors and the textures of the surrounding buildings (shades of brown, grey and black), and the window openings all contribute to a constant dialogue between the sculpture and its environment. Furthermore, the open shape of the sculpture allows people to sit and nest into it. An invitation to gaze elsewhere.,,<\/span><\/p>\n

Moll de la Fusta – Mirador del Port Vell \u2014 Diego Delgado, Roy Lichtenstein, Cara de Barcelona<\/i> (The Head), 1992
\n<\/b><\/span>Installed around the Old Harbor while this urban area was redesigned, the Cara de Barcelona<\/i> is a feminine face, a flame or maybe a paintbrush, depending on your perspective and on the light surrounding it. We met with it at sunset and the reflections of the nightlights on the tiles were stunning!<\/span><\/p>\n

Passeig Mar\u00edtim de la Barceloneta, Platja de Sant Miquel \u2014 Rebecca Horn, L\u2019estel ferit<\/i>, 1992
\n<\/b><\/span>Appel\u00e9e \u00ab\u00a0els cubs\u00a0\u00bb (\u00ab\u00a0les cubes\u00a0\u00bb en fran\u00e7ais) par les barcelonais, la sculpture de Rebecca Horn est devenue un point de rendez-vous pour les touristes et les locaux qui se prom\u00e8nent le long de la plage. Compos\u00e9e de quatre cubes d\u2019acier vides, empil\u00e9s d\u2019une fa\u00e7on faussement approximative, la sculpture qui s\u2019\u00e9l\u00e8ve \u00e0<\/span> 10 m\u00e8tres de hauteur, est facilement rep\u00e9rable. Command\u00e9e dans le cadre de la r\u00e9habilitation du quartier de la Barceloneta pour les Jeux Olympiques de 1992, L\u2019estel ferit<\/i> veut rendre hommage au pass\u00e9 du quartier de p\u00eacheurs, anciennement caract\u00e9ris\u00e9 par les baraques-restaurants (xiringuitos<\/i>) install\u00e9s sur la plage, qui rappellent les cubes de la sculpture.\u00a0<\/span>Barcelonans call it \u201cels cubs\u201d (\u201cthe cubes\u201d in English). This sculpture by Rebecca Horn has become a meeting point for tourists and locals strolling along the beach. Composed of four hollow metal cubes that are deliberately oddly stacked, the 32-feet-high sculpture is easy to spot. Commissioned during the rehabilitation of the Barceloneta neighborhood for the 1992 Olympic Games, L\u2019estel ferit<\/i> is meant to honor this fishermen neighborhood\u2019s past, which used to be characterized by beach restaurants (xiringuitos) set up on the beach, evoked by the cubes of the sculpture. <\/span><\/p>\n

El Prat Airport, Terminal B \u2014 Joan Mir\u00f3, Josep Lloren\u00e7 Artigas, Mural a l’Aeroport<\/i>, 1970
\n<\/b><\/span>Before flying off to new destinations, take a look at the monumental mosaic on the wall of Terminal B. Created with Mir\u00f3\u2019s friend Josep Lloren\u00e7 Artigas, the 160-feet long and 32-feet high mural is made of 4,865 sandstone tiles and weighs approximately 35 tons! Aeroport la benvinguda a la gent que arriba per l\u2019aire**<\/i>: the mosaic was installed here to greet air travellers, coming or leaving. <\/span><\/p>\n

Now let us wish you a pleasant exploration of Barcelona. Send us your pictures of outdoor sculptures using #sculpturenatureBCN and we will post them on our Facebook \/ Twitter \/ Instagram accounts!<\/span><\/p>\n

** Postcard from Joan Mir\u00f3 to Llu\u00eds Permanye <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Often referred to as \u201copen sky museum\u201d, Barcelona is a true gold mine when it comes to architecture, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":4198,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[40],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4292"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4292"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4294,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4292\/revisions\/4294"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/sculpture-nature_local.test\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}