The atarazans of Sevilla: amid building and architecture

Abstract

The architect Louis Kahn frequently said that a room, understood as an inhabitable shape, was the basic element of architecture, and the latter consisted of an «association of rooms». It is possible to state that in the Atarazanas, or shipyards, the room takes the shape of a nave and its architecture is basically the result of the juxtaposition of seventeen large naves, 100 meters long by 10 meters wide and 10 meters in height, the roof of which presumably was a wooden structure similar to that of a mosque.
Our participation in the Atarazanas was limited to the area made up of the first seven naves.
First we proceeded to uncover the space totally by eliminating the different layers and structures that little by little had concealed it, in order to obtain a complete manifestation of the structural space.
The building process meant a determined initial step towards restoring the unusual spaciousness of this construction of a sculptural nature, with our suggestion to in the future recover the genuine magnitude of one of the naves by removing all the filler.
Our second step was directed towards opening the building to the public. This allowed us to try processes and materials to equip the structure with the necessary elements to prepare it for a generic habitability whatever its future use might be. The third step we proposed and undertook focused on turning the former artillery foundry into a new hall, called the «Artillery Foundry Hall». The aim was to condition the room equipping it with a new roof adapted to acoustic, lighting and comfort requirements, and closing the arches without losing their identity nor the perceptual continuity of the entire building.
Seville is a place with hot summers and damp winters. It was necessary to ventilate and equip the hall with air conditioning as well as heating. The air conditioning was laid out on the spine of the roof and flows back beneath the seating connected to and reutilizing the old chimney.
These new forms and present-day materials, which allow for both the spoken word and silence, isolation and continuity, contemplation and activity, are acceptable in the Atarazanas and were proposed with the intention of unveiling the lesson the building itself has transmitted day by day since its origin. Our fourth step was to repair the Attic in the Head Section of the building.
Solving essential problems, understanding the significance of the Atarazanas, amid building and architecture, and affording the use of the rooms, has been the constant guiding force of our work, and by opening the building to the public contribution is made towards the total restoration, which is perhaps the principal reason behind our project.