nvernáculo is a pilot initiative by the Madrid Regional Government aimed at rethinking the way cultural activities are communicated in urban environments. The proposal seeks to reach new audiences through alternatives to traditional advertising formats, such as posters, banners, MUPIs (Urban Furniture as Information Points), and OPIs (Illuminated Advertising Objects). This project is part of a broader research effort by the studio that explores new ways of interaction between cultural institutions and public space, building on previous proposals like Exedra and Three Landscape Essays.
Invernáculo moves away from the traditional formats in advertising to approach the idea of urban furniture. The proposal extends the content of exhibitions through a greenhouse serving as a support structure for large-format images related to the exhibitions. These images, commissioned from photographers and artists, offer fresh interpretations of the pieces showcased in the exhibition hall, creating a kind of "exhibition about the exhibition" in the open air.
The location for the initial iteration of Invernáculo, revolving around the Canal de Isabel II Exhibition Hall and the nearby Third Reservoir Park, determines the design parameters for these devices. This site reflects some of the challenges the system could face elsewhere in the city. The park, located atop one of the four water reservoirs of the Canal de Isabel II, is essentially a roof—much like what frequently happens in urban environments, where the ground is perforated by parking lots, communication networks, basements, and access points.
Metal frames have been designed to hold the images. Emphasizing the roof-like nature of public space their structure adopts the profile of the iconic fencing surrounding the rooftop of Madrid’s Colegio Maravillas, by Alejandro de la Sota. Covered with transparent methacrylate sheets, these structures are conceived as transportable greenhouses or Wardian cases: controlled environments specifically designed to house species requiring special care.
A modular system of prefabricated concrete planters serves as the foundation for these frames. These pots contain the substrate necessary for plant rooting and water storage, significantly increasing the weight of the entire setup. This design and its assembly ensure both the stability of the devices and their transportation and relocation.
Extensible to other areas of the city, Invernáculo exists somewhere between a shrinking greenhouse and an anemic museum wall which, stripped of its usual plasterboard covering, reveals its moldy innards, now colonized by other species. Resembling a rehearsal of a curtain wall, Invernáculo is the ruin of a building that never was; the mock-up of an architecture that will never be.
Credits
Author: Lluís Alexandre Casanovas Blanco
Website: www.lluisalexandrecasanovas.com
Project Director: Irene Domínguez Serrano
Structural engineer: Jorge López Hidalgo (Vian Estudio)
Contractors: Intervento, Carpintería Expandida (Structures), Boomerang (Graphics), Nikolás Téllez (Planters)
Client: Consejería de Cultura, Turismo y Deporte, Comunidad de Madrid (coordinator: Alicia Nieto)
