Barcelona Visual: artistic interpretation by Mariadiamantes

Mariadiamantes is a studio from Barcelona founded by Clara Mercader, who is the author of Barcelona Visual.

The compilation of Barcelona’s icons, reinterpreted in a plastic and colourful way, has 50 images which represent the city: from its most famous buildings and transportations, to gastronomy or daily objects related to Mediterranean way of life.

For instance, Canaletes Fountain in the Ramblas can be found, or the distinctive black and yellow taxi. Also Barcelona chair designed by Mies van der Rohe for the Universal Expo 1929 is included…

… And objects such as Marquina oil and vinegar container or Copenhagen ashtray by André Ricard, both classic design icons from Barcelona edited by mobles 114.

At Mariadiamantes web you can find the illustrations and the book, and also a collection of postcards, to send and/or receive the best of Barcelona. Highly recommended.

‘Barcelona Visual’, una original forma de descubrir los iconos de Barcelona, por Mariadiamantes from Lunwerg Editores on Vimeo.

Sant Gervasi Joan Maragall library, by BCQ Arquitectura Barcelona

The new library of Sant Gervasi-La Bonanova neighbourhood in Barcelona is placed in the building which occupies the garden of Vil·la Florida Civic Center, partially buried to maintain the identity of the project.

The project by Baena Casamor Arquitectes has been named Garden of Light, and it is shaped by “light and silence patios” and “books and knowledge patios”.


The first, surrounded by glass, light and ventilate the interior while isolating the library from the street. The second, solid prisms filled with books, are part of the supporting structure of the library.

Among the courtyards and the volumes, indoor reading and work spaces are articulated. Areas that should be small, seeking to provide a comfortable feeling of domesticity to their users.

The interior is solved easily with little textures; ceiling, floor, furniture and walls are white in general, while the face that hide concrete retaining walls and structures of the building are covered with clay tiles. This porous material, sound absorbent and warm, reminds us that it is a half-buried building carved into the earth.

mobles 114 participates with PEY office table system with integrated lighting and some contract furniture such as Riga waste bin.

More about the project at the web mobles 114.