GRUPO ARANEA
Photos courtesy of Jesús Granada
TWISTED VALLEY
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Jury motivation
This project transforms an unused dry river bank that divided Elche into a vibrant, connected and versatile public landscape with many new routes and crossing points, and flourishing vegetation and ecosystem.
The participatory placemaking project of this project was exemplary, as were the architects’ beautiful, inspiring set of drawings.
In an age of austerity, Grupo Aranea shows that their talent and ingenuity can transcend political and economic restrictions, through a project that is a valuable model for contemporary urban regeneration elsewhere.
This project transforms an unused dry river bank that divided Elche into a vibrant, connected and versatile public landscape with many new routes and crossing points, and flourishing vegetation and ecosystem.
The participatory placemaking project of this project was exemplary, as were the architects’ beautiful, inspiring set of drawings.
In an age of austerity, Grupo Aranea shows that their talent and ingenuity can transcend political and economic restrictions, through a project that is a valuable model for contemporary urban regeneration elsewhere.
El Valle Trenzado aims to recover the pedestrian’s traffic footprint.
The system aims to give voice to the Vinalopó river. The sinuous braids have no relation to the orthogonality of the city. These squiggly lines shape thes lopes. Offer more comfortable routes and incorporate the possibility of crossing the river to continue the ride.
The roads that float on the untouchable riverbed of concrete, become the heroes of the reconquest. And they blur the difference between bridge and path, becoming a graphic thought solved by a material abstraction. A single bridge becomes a network of trails which fold, bend, stretch, tighten, disperse, curve, and of course twist.
The vegetation is also a material. Native species and trees help to build the shadow of the forest. A system based on the experience, understanding and empathy to connect with elegance, both sections which divide Elche.The valley has already started plaiting, now reduced to infrastructural minimums, and over time they will allow the flourishing of urban activities.
The system aims to give voice to the Vinalopó river. The sinuous braids have no relation to the orthogonality of the city. These squiggly lines shape thes lopes. Offer more comfortable routes and incorporate the possibility of crossing the river to continue the ride.
The roads that float on the untouchable riverbed of concrete, become the heroes of the reconquest. And they blur the difference between bridge and path, becoming a graphic thought solved by a material abstraction. A single bridge becomes a network of trails which fold, bend, stretch, tighten, disperse, curve, and of course twist.
The vegetation is also a material. Native species and trees help to build the shadow of the forest. A system based on the experience, understanding and empathy to connect with elegance, both sections which divide Elche.The valley has already started plaiting, now reduced to infrastructural minimums, and over time they will allow the flourishing of urban activities.