ISRAEL ALBA
architecture can
MARAVILLAS GYMNASIUM. 1962-2012: 50 YEARS OF LIFE. AUDIOVISUAL DOCUMENT 17/06/2013 // Blog

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Maravillas School Gymnasium in Madrid, the work of architect Alejandro de la Sota, the Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas La Salle School is organising a series of commemorative events with the tagline: “Maravillas Gymnasium. 1962-2012: 50 years of life”.

An audiovisual document made with Time-lapse technology shows the life and work of the gymnasium over the course of a typical day in a way never seen before. This document, commissioned by the Nuestra Señora de las Maravillas School, was directed by architect Israel Alba Ramis and produced by film maker Diego Hurtado de Mendoza.

It is a tribute to one of the works most representative not just of Spanish modern architecture, but of the international history of modern architecture. After 50 years, the Maravillas Gymnasium continues to amaze architects and students from all over the world. It is a timeless workinformed by livingrather than chronological time and it continues to light the path forward for architecture in this uncertain start to the 21st century. Its solution to the initial constraints (steep slopes, limited budget and a mix-used program) based on logic, coherence and rationality (more usually thought of as characteristics of engineering) continues to be as valid today as it ever was.