Women’s Institute-Municipal Archive and Shadow Square_ Memory

The center of Móstoles City, although it seems to have a caothic condition, it is formed by a structure of differents public squares. From the Town Hall Square, there is urban pathway that conects the Cultura Square, the Ernesto Peces Square and the Pradillo Square.

The IMAM project, located between party walls, it is conceived like one more square that belongs to this general structure of public spaces. It not only proposes a new passageway between Colón and Ricardo Medem Streets but also a new half-covered public space with vegetation, childs playground, benchs….

Although they are two buildings with different functions, the Women’s Institute and the Municipal Archive, the construction is configured as one piece, pierced by longitudinal courtyards. From the public square, these courtyards penetrate the building becominng huge flower beds with different types of scented climbing plants, sage, lavander and bamboo.

According to the competition requirements, the old Casino facade has been rebuilt, but with a new system of perforated galvanized steel plates, which arrange the access to the Municipal Archive, and also a new glasshouse between this facade and the new building.

Each courtyard generates two facade systems: the north facades, formed by large concrete walls washed with surface deactivant agent, and colored methacrylate bubbles; and the south facades, formed by large panes of different types of glass according to the sun’s position. Both structural facades are also supported by V-shaped pillars, which free the ground floor space.

We are proposing a building without refinement. A raw building.
The structure is the finish of the building, the installations are visible, without false ceilings, etc… Only the colored methacrylate bubbles and the graffiti done by the Boamistura group of artists, will contrast with the rest of the building.

The configuration of the building’s structural system is based on mixed porticoes made of steel and concrete.
The porticoes on the north side are formed by reinforced concrete screens, which work as deep beams, supported on HEM metallic pillars in a V shape.
The porticoes on the south side are formed by HEM metallic pillars which make triangular geometries to reduce the openings of the concrete beams.
The ends of each piece are freed up by large cantilevers of between 5 and 6 m., supported by the concrete screens and by the strenght of the HEM pillars which hang from their ends. There are two types of framework according to free light: if they have less than 5 m., they are flat 20 cms thick concrete slabs; if they have more than 5 m., they are ligth frameworks surfaces 50 cms. thick.
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