Surely we are not wrong when we say that we are all thinking about what we are going to do when the current situation happens and we can go out again, to see family, friends and colleagues. From The Room Papers we want to propose an alternative plan for the end of the quarantine. Five reference buildings of contemporary architecture in Barcelona that offer guided tours, so we can delve into and learn a little more about the design history of Barcelona.

The first, and how could it be otherwise, is the Mies Van Der Rohe Pavilion, located in the Plaza de Carles Buigas in Montjuic. It was designed by the architect Mies Van Der Rohe and the designer Lilly Reich, as the German pavilion for the Barcelona International exhibition in 1929. In 1930, after the closing of the Exhibition, it was dismantled; It was in 1980, thanks to the architect Oriol Bohigas, when the Pavilion was rebuilt again and in 1986 it was inaugurated. The pavilion stands out for the geometric use and precision of the assembly of the materials. Crystal, steel, and four different types of stone (Roman travertine, green marble from the Alps, ancient green marble from Greece, and golden onyx from the Atlas). In the Pavilion we can also see the famous Barcelona Chair, designed exclusively for the space, and which is now an icon of modern design. Visiting hours are from 10am to 8pm from Monday to Sunday and they offer the possibility of guided tours.

Secondly, we have the Joan Miró Foundation also located in the Montjuïc area in the Parc de Montjuïc. The building of the architect and urban planner Josep Lluís Sert gives rise to the Miró Museum, which with an interdisciplinary approach combines temporary exhibitions of artists of the 20th and 21st century with academic activities and projects linked to the work of Miró. It is one of the few buildings in the world in which the artist and architect establish a complicity between work and spaces. With a rationalist structure with great Mediterranean features, such as the central patio and the roof terrace, it is one of the most outstanding examples of rationalist architecture in the city of Barcelona. Visiting hours are Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 6pm, with the possibility of a guided tour.

Next, the Macba Museum located in Plaça dels Àngels, in the Raval neighborhood. The “Meier Building” designed by the American architect Richard Meier, formally reinterprets rationalism, taking the modern movement and Le Corbusier as a reference. It results in a building that combines straight lines and curved lines, with a play of light that penetrates from the outside of the building, softening the geometry. Built between 1991 and 1995, it was an injection of life and energy for the area of ​​the city where it is located. The museum is dedicated to the exhibition of contemporary art and cultural practices from the second half of the 20th century. Visiting hours are Monday to Friday from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sundays and holidays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with the possibility of a guided tour.

The next building is the famous Walden 7 Building, located in Sant Just Desvern. Designed in 1970 by the architect Ricard Bofill and the architect Anna Bofill, it was born as a response to the problem of wanting to give maximum building capacity to the plots and thus lower the price of homes. The proposal was the creation of a group of houses with a high building density per square meter, an alternative to the rationalist block of residences. It was conceived as a groundbreaking and innovative proposal from many angles. It is made up of 18 towers that move from its base forming a curve, resulting in a 16-storey maze with 7 interior courtyards connected vertically and horizontally. There is the possibility of visiting this building through private guided tours that are contracted through its website.

As a last proposal, we have the Xavier Corberó House-Workshop Building. Designed and built by the same in 1968 in Esplugues de Llobregat, it is considered a sculptural and architectural gem. Five labyrinthine plants vertebrated by a hexagonal inner courtyard, with large cement arches on the outside reminiscent of a large gray skeleton, and a large garden on the top floor. The light that enters from the outside is reflected on the walls creating a kaleidoscope effect, and the coldness of the patio’s concrete contrasts with the warmth of the wood inside. In order to visit it, you have to hire a private tour available through its website. For this building, an image is worth a thousand words: