Salamanca Architects Association

Description

The proposal seeks to be sensitive to the site by adapting its layout to the shape of the plot. The PLAZA within the complex serves as the entrance courtyard to the building.The project aimed to reinterpret local architecture through the use of traditional elements such as the TAPIA (rammed earth walls), ZAGUÁN (entrance lobby), PORTALÓN (entrance gate) and PATIOS, as well as some examples of Salamanca’s architecture, such as the Palacio de la Salina with its succession of exterior spaces.The entrance lobby, a large opening on Arroyo de Santo Domingo street, is the first filter between the exterior and the plaza, giving access to this exterior space and offering views of the great volume of the Cathedral. A grill at the entrance allows the plaza to close at night. The height of the wall and the arrangement of the trees are used to control the views, hiding the nearby building and framing the views in the distance. A wooden and glass door on the north side of the building gives access to the interior space from the plaza. This lobby space allows for the separation of the building into two different areas, the Cultural Foundation (FUNCOAL) and the Professional Association of Architects (COAL), allowing them to operate independently.The ground floor houses the FUNCOAL area, which occupies three open-plan rooms that can be used either separately or together, in the form of double rooms or a large single room. In the case of events with a large number of people and when the weather permits, this room can be opened to the outside to make the plaza a part of it, transforming it into a continuous indoor-outdoor space. Lighting is provided by skylights with large V-shaped beams, which occupy the centre of the space. In addition, the openings between the different volumes allow natural light to enter the space.  The COAL occupies the first floor and comprises of a customer reception area, an administrative area, a series of offices for the approval of projects and the technical secretariat. Meanwhile, the second floor houses the multi-purpose offices and the basement floors house the workshop, the archive and the building’s equipment. In the project approval offices, a lattice enclosure provides views towards Arroyo de Santo Domingo street and allows natural light to enter. In the technical secretariat and meeting room area, a floor-to-ceiling stone lattice in the form of a large mullioned window offers close views of the PLAZA and distant, intersecting views of the Cathedral.Last but not least, the offices in the administrative area and the multi-purpose offices combine the concept of compartmentalised spaces with that of a continuous office space thanks to the presence of courtyards which, in addition to providing light, functionally separate and visually unify the space.(Description provided by the architects)