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Andalucía: The Latest Architecture and News

Andalucía Rejects Construction of Alvaro Siza's New Gate of Alhambra Project

The Regional Government of Andalucía (Spain) has decided not to move forward with plans to build "Puerta Nueva," the project for the new gate of Alhambra. Designed by Álvaro Siza and Juan Domingo Santos, the proposal won an international competition held in 2010. According to the newspaper El País, the decision follows the latest Icomos report, which rejects its construction and suggests it would have a "negative impact on the exceptional universal value of this monument World Heritage."

The 1992 Pritzker Prize winner's project sparked a long-running dispute between the Monument Patronage, the Mayor's Office of Granada and cultural institutions of Andalusia for the high concentration of commercial services that would be included in the project. "How is it possible to argue that the project is not integrated and is invasive in the landscape when the jury noted that one of its main virtues was its integration in a place so sensitive and intervened since the twentieth century?" remarked Siza and Santos on the decision of Andalucía, according to El País.

Living Under a Rock: Setenil de las Bodegas

The Andalucian town of Setenil de las Bodegas looks like something from the set of a culturally adventurous fantasy film, but cave dwelling is actually common in Andalucia; being so close to the African continental plate, geological forces threw up mountain ranges and volcanoes that are perfectly suited for habitation. The rocks and caves make for surprisingly easy settlement, and the nearby Cueva de la Pileta shows evidence of a human presence up to 25,000 years ago. After that, though, the inhabitants of the caves here are mostly ignored up until the 12th century, when Setenil's Moorish castle appears on the historical record.

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Swimming Pool in “Bola de Oro” Sports Centre / José Luis Rodríguez Gil, Jorge Molinero Sánchez

Swimming Pool in “Bola de Oro” Sports Centre / José Luis Rodríguez Gil, Jorge Molinero Sánchez - Image 16 of 4
© Fernando Alda

Architects: José Luis Rodríguez Gil
Location: Granada, Andalucia, Spain
Design Team: José Luis Rodríguez Gil, Jorge G. Molinero Sánchez
Project Year: 2009
Photographs: Fernando Alda

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