Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives
Knowledge of the link between church and public space remains limited. However, there seems to exist a relationship between the church and the city, dating back to the first foundational temples. This relationship is still present in the churches of the most recently created neighborhoods, including...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Buildings |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/6/1370 |
| _version_ | 1797595678872961024 |
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| author | Alba Arboix-Alió Josep Maria Pons-Poblet Adrià Arboix Jordi Arboix-Alió |
| author_facet | Alba Arboix-Alió Josep Maria Pons-Poblet Adrià Arboix Jordi Arboix-Alió |
| author_sort | Alba Arboix-Alió |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Knowledge of the link between church and public space remains limited. However, there seems to exist a relationship between the church and the city, dating back to the first foundational temples. This relationship is still present in the churches of the most recently created neighborhoods, including those that are now gone and gave way to new squares, as well as those that were repurposed to house new activities. In this study, the relationship between public space and 132 parish churches within the municipal limits of Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) was analyzed, with the aim to highlighting the most representative examples to understand the role of religious buildings in the urban landscape of the contemporary city. Morphological analyses and comparative views were the methodological research tools used for drawing new maps highlighting how they configure urban axes and homogeneous patterns. Finally, we included a relevant case study of urban regeneration, Mare de Déu dels Àngels church, as an example to demonstrate that a church without a square can have one. In conclusion, churches influenced both the public space adjacent to the parish temples and the urban growth and expansion of the city of Barcelona. Moreover, urban regeneration and new uses of some underutilized churches are a non-negligible future perspective. Churches are relevant for understanding the past of the city of Barcelona, but they are also important for the present and future of the city’s public space. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:40:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-654c4a94f48048e79730398be40bb660 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:40:44Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Buildings |
| spelling | doaj.art-654c4a94f48048e79730398be40bb6602023-11-18T09:37:21ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092023-05-01136137010.3390/buildings13061370Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future PerspectivesAlba Arboix-Alió0Josep Maria Pons-Poblet1Adrià Arboix2Jordi Arboix-Alió3Departament d’Arts Visuals i Disseny, Universitat de Barcelona (UB), 08028 Barcelona, SpainDepartament de Resistència de Materials i Estructures a l’Enginyeria, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), 08028 Barcelona, SpainCerebrovascular Division, Department of Neurology, Hospital Universitari del Sagrat Cor, Universitat de Barcelona, 08029 Barcelona, SpainDepartment of Sports Science, Ramon Llull University, FPCEE Blanquerna, 08025 Barcelona, SpainKnowledge of the link between church and public space remains limited. However, there seems to exist a relationship between the church and the city, dating back to the first foundational temples. This relationship is still present in the churches of the most recently created neighborhoods, including those that are now gone and gave way to new squares, as well as those that were repurposed to house new activities. In this study, the relationship between public space and 132 parish churches within the municipal limits of Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) was analyzed, with the aim to highlighting the most representative examples to understand the role of religious buildings in the urban landscape of the contemporary city. Morphological analyses and comparative views were the methodological research tools used for drawing new maps highlighting how they configure urban axes and homogeneous patterns. Finally, we included a relevant case study of urban regeneration, Mare de Déu dels Àngels church, as an example to demonstrate that a church without a square can have one. In conclusion, churches influenced both the public space adjacent to the parish temples and the urban growth and expansion of the city of Barcelona. Moreover, urban regeneration and new uses of some underutilized churches are a non-negligible future perspective. Churches are relevant for understanding the past of the city of Barcelona, but they are also important for the present and future of the city’s public space.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/6/1370Barcelonachurchpublic spaceurban growthadaptive reuseheritage |
| spellingShingle | Alba Arboix-Alió Josep Maria Pons-Poblet Adrià Arboix Jordi Arboix-Alió Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives Buildings Barcelona church public space urban growth adaptive reuse heritage |
| title | Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives |
| title_full | Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives |
| title_fullStr | Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives |
| title_full_unstemmed | Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives |
| title_short | Relevance of Catholic Parish Churches in Public Space in Barcelona: Historical Analysis and Future Perspectives |
| title_sort | relevance of catholic parish churches in public space in barcelona historical analysis and future perspectives |
| topic | Barcelona church public space urban growth adaptive reuse heritage |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/13/6/1370 |
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