source: archdaily

El “B” is this long construction, a body, that feeds on the heritage -the continuity- of a site’s treatment: THE Cartagena harbour, which is nothing but a harbour in Cartagena, borderline of the city from the sea. Everything here belongs to it, belongs to the port, any port we should say: the immaculate straightness of the pier edge (straight), the invariably calm sea (flat), the artificially horizontal plane of the dock (flat), the sky as the variable background for this plane (plane on a plane?), all based on an artifice to represent the simplest -and by virtue of its simplicity, the most natural, the most immensely artificial- plane that equates to the most natural.

The Alfonso XII dock is 1,000 metres long, exactly a kilometre, where we can assume that we are at the end. A 20 metre wide strip runs the full length, parallel to the edge, which is respected by the buildings. A very pleasant walk can be designed for the city along this strip, a daily procession following the immutable edge. In fact, this promenade is what we encourage; it is what we insert in the building, in a dimensional continuum that seems to dig out an artificial beach, but is actually a continuity of history, because the old El Batel beach was right here, on this very spot. The harbour is artificial, not the beach.

This reclaimed beach-ramp gradually submerges us below the waterline, with the pier’s horizontal line as a constant reference. At this point we cease to belong to the outside world and start to belong to ourselves, ourselves in movement, ourselves strolling, working on the 210 metre scale reserved site for ourselves. We have worked on the contrast with the outer facade produced by the cut at ground level, and we continue to make use of the dictatorship of the dock, but precisely in opposition to it.

We refuse include the harbour’s beautiful orthogonal monotony; we exclude the hardness of the port from the interior, and instead, we seek something that is completely the opposite: translucent, delicate, light, aquatic; something that has to do with what Luigi Nono defined as “a space for water music”.

Each component and detail of this project is another project in itself, but, as each project, acting in obedience to its surroundings, all belong to both a whole, not sought, but deduced, which is what shapes the character of El “B”.

All the material, both aluminium and plastic, is manufactured from a single extruded section, varied in placement and colour to give the appearance of multiple pieces. These pieces are all set parallel to the pier edge to underscore the idea of horizontality and achieve an even longer rectangle than it already is, in this case extruded like a “churro” (wrinkled doughnut), only on its immediate scale: overall, it seems to be the result of an accumulation of different components, stacked neatly on the pier. The memory of a former use.

Outwardly and also inwardly, this is an extremely false complex, one set as the antagonist of the other, like people who seem to be very quiet but are actually paralyzed by the continuous movement of their central nervous system. Their antagonism is clearly evident in the coexistence of the upper and the lower floors, a perfect example of anacoluthon: there is no agreement between them. Their only connection is that both thrive on the harbour, because, we insist, the entire project thrives on the idea and the memory of a harbour; what happens here now and what used to happen here.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: yellowtrace

“We refuse to include the harbour’s beautiful orthogonal monotony; we exclude the hardness of the port from the interior, and instead, we seek something that is completely the opposite – translucent, delicate, light, aquatic – something that has to do with what Luigi Nono defined as a space for water music.” – SelgasCano

It doesn’t happen every day that I come across a public building which makes my design engine rev at a slightly higher rate. This little baby however… Wroom wroom! She’s a beauty! Located in the docks of the harbour city of Cartagena in Spain, this auditorium and performance centre El “B” was designed by Madrid-based practice SelgasCano (who are clearly talented, but boy do they have an average website – most unfortunate).

The plastic texture of the building has a magical, delicate quality – the translucent extruded polycarb panels expose the building’s metallic structure. There is a clever play of tonalities created with accents of neon paint into each piece, with varying colours and intensities. The auditorium itself has a surreal aquatic ambience – I imagine one would feel submerged under water in this space.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: detailde

»El Batel«, das kleine Boot, heißt das neue Kongresszentrum in Cartagena, benannt nach dem gleichnamigen Strand. Das 200 Meter lange Gebäude erstreckt sich direkt am Wasser, begleitet von einer holzbeplankten Uferpromenade. Parallel dazu erschließt ein Foyer mit Rampen, Bänken und Brücken im Inneren zwei große Auditorien und vier koppelbare Kongresssäle. Neben den inszenierten Verkehrszonen prägen transluzente Kunststoffe in starken Farben das Gebäude innen wie außen. Nachts leuchtet der Baukörper wie eine Laterne, da die Fassade über die gesamte Länge mit LEDs bestückt ist. Ein stählernes Fachwerk bildet die konstruktive Struktur, die beidseitig mit Kunststoff verkleidet als doppelte Fassade fungiert. Die wellenförmigen Elemente bestehen außen aus UV-beständigem, witterungsfestem Meth­acrylat und innen aus feuerbeständigem ­Polycarbonat. Kunststoffröhren in gelben, orangen und milchweißen Tönen auf lasergeschnittenen gezahnten Schienen ergänzen die Fassadenverkleidung und tauchen auf den Terrassen als schwebende Pergola wieder auf.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: dsgnrcl

Se acaba de concluir, el auditorio y centro de eventos “el B”‘ diseñado por selgascano con sede en Madrid. Emplazado a lo largo de los muelles de la ciudad portuaria de Cartagena, España. Abarcando un kilómetro de largo el muelle de Alfonso, un vacío 20 metros entre el edificio y el agua sirve como un paseo marítimo, que es la línea de costa artificial del puerto. El exterior translúcido del volumen lineal se extiende 210 metros y los proyectos de los bordes ortogonales que se encuentran en el medio ambiente por el hombre. Ya que los visitantes entran en el interior, un espacio delicado y ligero se presenta, que evoca un ambiente acuático suave. Aluminio y plástico fabricados a partir de una sola sección extruida se colocan en diversas formas y teñido con pigmentos para aparecer como elementos diferentes. De posición paralela a la orilla del muelle, la horizontalidad de la fachada de bajo perfil acentúa la longitud de las estructuras, con una terraza en la azotea con vistas panorámicas y despejadas al mar.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: elledecorit

El B, a Cartagena (Spagna), è un centro per congressi e spettacoli. Ma merita una visita anche solo per l’edificio, che ha l’aspetto di una serie di scatole traslucide posate sul lungomare. Volumi essenziali che la notte diventano luminosi. il progetto, dello studio SelgasCano, è tutto giocato su materiali semitrasparenti, note di colore e volumi molto dinamici.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: carlosbeiranl

Aan de haven van de stad Cartagena in Spanje is dit langwerpige gebouw ontworpen door het Madrileense architectenbureau SelgasCano. Langs de dokken van de havenstad ligt dit publieke gebouw. De promenade tussen het gebouw en de haven is 20 meter diep en maakt dat het gebouw nog beter contrasteert in de omgeving. De doorschijnende buitenkant van het lineaire volume is 210 meter lang.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
source: forumkavkaz

Мадридская архитектурная компания Selgascano недавно завершила проектирование здания под названием “el B”, которая состоит из разнообразных аудиторий, позволяющих проводить там разнообразные конференции и выступления. Само здание занимает 1 километр и находится рядом с доками города Картахена, Испания (Cartagena, Spain).