'Eleva', the proposal for the entrances to San Sebastian's new underground metro, is
based on the idea of the manipulation of the terrain.
As the tubes of the metro network are generated by excavating and perforating the
ground, the access is created by cutting into the pavement in correspondence to the
surface world.
The concept is to emphasize the sites by seemingly extruding the ground upwards and then cutting into the surface to obtain access to the subterranean levels.
Finally the area of intervention is delimited and indicated by a change of
material.
As a result the entrance-object is sinuously curved, emphasizing its strong sculptural character and
demanding its agency on the urban scale. The entrances are conceived as
landmarks of the city of San Sebastian, leading users to recognize them as an
inseparable part of the metro and the urban surroundings.
Eleva: Metro entrances for San Sebastian
The young BABELstudio enters the second stage of an international design competition.
View Article details
- 22 August 2011
- San Sebastian
The construction is made of a curved reinforced-concrete shell structure that, due to its catenary shape, provides a minimal thickness ensuring the lightness of the object. Considering the coatings and waterproofing requirements, the minimum
section is calculated to approximately 12cm.
The white concrete structure is
polished on its underside and covered with black hexagonal ceramic tiles on the outer face. These pieces are manufactured in different finishes. While rough textured ones are used for the pavement, the tiles gradually change to demi-matte,
and finally enameled ones. The light softly illuminates the pixelated appearance
of the curve and spreads to all directions generating expressive nuances of light.
Architect BABELstudio: Andrea García Crespo, Michael Schmidt
Location: San Sebastian, Spain
Client: Euskal Trenbide Sarea, Department of Housing, Transport and Public Works
of the Basque Government
Project: 2011
The entrances are conceived as landmarks of the city of San Sebastian, leading users to recognize them as an inseparable part of the metro and the urban surroundings.