In Spain, the new Aigües de Vilajuïga exhibition centre is located within the existing fabric of an old 19th-century farmhouse and with a special essence – carbonated water – flowing beneath. Forming the central concept of the design, TwoBo Architects sought to reveal, dig and descend to reveal the water, which has continuously flown unseen in an aquifer for over 100 years.
On the surface the architects changed nothing, inserting new training facilities, exhibition showrooms and offices spaces within the existing walls, retaining and unveiling forgotten details and materiality.
But beneath, the architects changed everything. In the middle of the garden, concealed behind a wall of cypress trees, a large water tank with a 6-meter depth was discovered.
The architects explain, ‘We dug around the tank until we could see the round wall from the outside. and through the wall we stepped inside, displacing the water to a layer on top and using its reflections to fill up this new space, like memories enabled by skylights in the ceiling. submerged skylights.’
Throughout, both people and light are brought down into a subterranean world. Light flows down from skylights while people walk down ramps, slowly, like swimming into the depths.
‘The site and the tank, undisturbed, speaks of the permanence of Vilajuïga. The ramp suggests movement on to the next stage,’ say the architects.
