Edificios emblemáticos en Barcelona: Caixa Forum

Barcelona Caixa Forum

Nestling in a side street at close to the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya at Monjuic sits the Caixa Forum. This striking modernist building completed in 1911, once a former textile factory is now a huge exhibition space. The building itself was designed by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, an innovator of modernist ideas who embellished the building with elaborate ironwork, tiles and distinctive decorative brickwork so common to some of Barcelona’s modernist buildings. The building is one of the chief examples of modernist architecture in Barcelona.

The building only remained in operation as a textile factory for 11 years before it closed. After a succession of uses it became stabling and garaging for the National Police Force.  In 1963 “La Caixa” acquired the building and 30 years later decided to return the iconic modernist building back to the city and the people of Barcelona and Spain. Within 10 years the building was restored, new spaces created and a completely new modern public entrance was designed by Japanese designer Arata Isozaki. The large white area also doubles as a performance space. To create a new subterranean entrance almost 100,000 bricks were fired to match the original ones and in 2002 the building re-opened for the launch of Caixa Forum, the new social and cultural centre of the “la Caixa Foundation” in Barcelona.

The La Caixa Forum hosts conferences and has permanent and temporary exhibitions and has almost three acres of exhibition space. Visitor services are catered for with a cafeteria, terrace, book and gift shop. There are also conference facilities, classrooms and a lecture theatre. When visiting the Forum it’s possible to explore the rooftop battlements which give fantastic views of the surrounding area. Entrance to the building is free to the general public and some of the exhibitions are also free if you are a La Caixa customer or a teacher!! Just present your La Caixa card at the reception desk for your free ticket. The museum is open Mon-Friday and weekends and certain times on public holidays.

For more information on opening times, current exhibitions and how to get to the Caixa Forum.

D. Linsay