Natural colour in Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31637/epsir-2025-1624Keywords:
Mies van der Rohe, Barcelona Pavilion, glass, stone, metal, colour, material, lightAbstract
Introduction: The construction of the German Pavilion for the Universal Exhibition in Barcelona in 1929 is a manifesto to the honesty of stone materials linked to Nature. A pavilion whose exhibition object is matter in its primary state. The materials transformed by man are shown as mechanisms used to shape a space in which the traditional materials linked to nature are shown without distortion. Methodology: An empirical study of the different spaces qualified by light and colour is carried out and those that appear in the Pavilion are selected. Results: We can identify several devices that transform the colour of the light, causing the planes of natural material to appear isolated from their surroundings, floating without references. These spatial devices appear linked to the new materials, and specifically glass. Discussion and conclusions: In the interior space, Mediterranean light is controlled through the interrelation of different filtering and diffusion devices. In this way, the materials can offer their splendour under a diffuse and continuous light. The reflection devices inherent in the nature of the materials used make the space infinite, breaking the physical limits and confusing the interior and the exterior.
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