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Internalities
Spanish Pavilion

19th Venice Biennale, IT

2025




The Spanish Pavilion responds to Carlo Ratti’s suggestion to provide “a place, a solution” to the climate crisis through a word that does not exist: Internalities. Through this concept, the exhibition explores how architects can (and must) minimize the environmental externalities associated with production processes in order to move toward the decarbonization of construction. Internalities highlights the work of a new generation of Spanish architects whose practices are characterized by the use of local, regenerative, and low-carbon-footprint resources. Collectively, they contribute to deepening the regional ecologies of materials such as wood, stone, and earth, as well as the forests, quarries, and soils from which they come. These works thus generate new territorial balances and develop new agreements between ecologies and economies.

The term Internality stands in contrast to the notion of Externality. The latter was coined in 1920 by economist Arthur Pigou and refers to the environmental repercussions that are not accounted for in standard production processes. The construction sector generates externalities when we extract Materials, burn Energy, displace local Labor, generate Residues, and release Emissions. These externalities create a serious imbalance between the buildings we construct and the territories we impact. Combined, they account for 37% of global CO₂ emissions. Fostering Internalities is a radical way to drastically cut this percentage.

The exhibition is organized around a central introductory room and five peripheral rooms, each presenting a research theme. The central room, Balance, includes 16 recent architectural works that demonstrate the progress made in Spain toward decarbonizing construction and generating territorial balance. The peripheral rooms explore five axes of internality that contribute to decarbonization in Spain: Materials, Energy, Labor, Residues, and Emissions. Each axis has been explored by a team of local architects and photographers who studied a specific territory and resource within the Spanish landscape.


︎︎︎For more info: www.internalities.eu


Curators:
Roi Salgueiro
Manuel Bouzas

Commissioner:
MIVAU Government of Spain, AC/E, AECID.

In collaboration with:
FINSA,  Arquia Foundation

Contributors:
Abalo Alonso, Natura Futura, Bamba Studio, BeAr, Bosch. Capdeferro, Branco del Río, Camps Felip Arquitecturia, López Rivera, H arquitectes, Isla, Josep Ferrando, Pedro García, Mar Puig, Manel Casellas, KAUH, Munarq, Peris+Toral, Sergio Sebastián, TAKK, Ted’A, Daniel Ibáñez, Carla Ferrer, María Azkarate, Aurora Armental, Stefano Ciurlo, Luis Díaz Díaz, Anna Bach, Eugeni Bach, Caterina Barjau, Lucas Muñoz, Ana Amado, Carles Oliver, David Mayol, Milena Villalba,

Visual Identity:
Miguel Angel Quiroga


Photographer:
Luis Díaz Díaz


























Cabane 7L

Villa Medici, Rome, IT

2024



Situated at one of the highest points in the eternal city, the Cabane 7L serves as an observatory that mediates between the skyline and the gardens of Villa Medici, the French Academy in Rome. In these Renaissance gardens, the installation offers visitors the opportunity to ascend to the canopy level of these historic gardens and discover a panoramic view never captured before. Constructed entirely from mass timber, the project serves as a temporary venue for visitors, residents, and artists, reactivating one of the city’s most iconic locations. During the summer of 2024, the Cabane 7L  hosted various cultural events, including performances, concerts, and conversations. The Cabane 7L draws inspiration from its unique topographical and historical context. In the sixteenth century, on the outskirts of ancient Rome, Ferdinando I de’ Medici transformed the residence of Cardinal Ricci on the Pincian Hill into a Renaissance villa known for its distinctive architecture and gardens. Since the establishment of the French Academy in the early nineteenth century, generations of Romans have witnessed the evolution of the academy's gardens, which outline their iconic silhouette of pine trees. Cabane 7L poses a thought-provoking question: What have those trees witnessed over these centuries?


Author:
Manuel Bouzas

Team:
Juan F. De la Torre
Rosita Palladino

Photographer:
Luis Diaz Diaz

Organizer:
Festival des Cabanes
Villa Medici 

Collaborators:
Librairie 7L

CHANEL

























Mediterráneo
TAC! Festival

Valencia, ES

2023



This project pays tribute to the Mediterranean climate by recognizing the role of blinds as an architectural element that historically enabled people to adapt to challenging weather conditions. Blinds have brought shade and character to countless streets across southern Europe. However, modern mechanical systems, driven by high energy consumption, have replaced them, posing environmental risks. Using regenerative, bio-based, and locally sourced materials, the project features long wooden blinds suspended from a catenary canopy suspended from two triangular wooden porticos that support 400 sqm of traditional blinds. The vibrant green shade produced by the blinds transforms the site into a lively public space for the local community. Additionally, a circular opening illuminates a small garden that regulates temperatures during late summer. Stones integrated into the design serve as both counterweights and furniture. Over the course of the festival,  community members are invited to explore and reactivate this space. The material palette echoes diverse landscapes located within 300 km from the site, such as the pine plantations of Soria, the blind factories of Sax (Alicante), and the stone quarries of Teruel. After dismantling, the materials were recirculated and donated, leaving a temporary footprint in the city.


Author:
Manuel Bouzas

Structural Design:
Juan F. De la Torre

Photographer:
Luis Diaz Diaz

Client:
TAC! Festival,

Organizers:
MITMA Spanish Government, Arquia Foundation, Valencia City Council, Las Naves







































Atlas

Braga, PT

2025



In the Praça das Fontainhas of Braga, Portugal, nestled between stone walls and vegetation, there remains a space from the old estate that existed before the area was urbanized in the 1980s. Known as the Fonte do Atlas, or the Fountain of the World, this space never had a roof, but its configuration—with two side stairway accesses, the fountain on one end, and a false façade on the other, facing a basin—suggests a forgotten use or an unfinished gesture. The proposal does not resolve this ambiguity: it inhabits it. Two long beams of reused steel rest on the tops of the side walls, allowing natural light to enter. A third beam, placed transversely at one end, is supported by V-shaped tubular elements anchored to a stone set within the existing basin. Resting on this structure is a wooden dome built using the Lamella system: a curved grid method developed in the 1920s by the German engineer Friedrich Zollinger. Composed of diagonal slats arranged in diamond shapes, the system enables the creation of lightweight, self-supporting, and modular surfaces that promote structural efficiency. This structure does not cover the fountain. Instead, it hovers above it, activating multiple possibilities for use: it may become a place of pause, of conversation, of gathering, or of imagination within the intimate cosmos of the Fontainhas neighborhood.


Author:
Manuel Bouzas

Team:
Juan F. De la Torre (structure), Riley Wine and Varun Gandhi (assistants)

Collaborators:
Cornell AAP, Xilonor, FINSA, ArtWorks 

Organizer:
Forma da Vizinhanca

Curators:
Space Transcribers









Librairie 7L

Villa Medici, Rome, IT

2024



Established in Paris in 1999 by CHANEL’s fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld, the Library 7L is a bookstore specializing in photography, design, decoration, architecture, art, and fashion. In 2021, it was acquired by CHANEL, and since then, it has seen substantial development, including the establishment of a new branch within the historic Villa Medici, home to the French Academy in Rome. This project seeks to reimagine the Rome-based library, incorporating specially designed furniture that not only showcases the books but also enhances the overall visitor experience. Inspired by the iconic Bouquinistes bookstalls lining the banks of the Seine in Paris, six pine wood modules are designed as boxes that can be opened or closed. These adaptable units are constructed to display an array of items, from books to art pieces created by academy residents, offering flexibility for indoor or outdoor setups to facilitate public engagements, book launches, dialogues, events, and more.


Author:
Manuel Bouzas
Rosita Palladino

Photographer:
Luis Diaz Diaz

Client:
Librarie 7L
Villa Medici 

In collaboration with:
Librairie 7L
CHANEL