Vallecas and the "Air Trees"
In the outskirts of Madrid many new areas were planned for development and were constructed in the past ten years. But when the crisis hit these areas stood still and remain as a constant reminder of the burst construction bubble fueled by speculation and a boom economy. Some of these areas are private apartments and others are pubic housing. Last week David Cohn took me on a tour of Vallecas. Specifically I wanted to see an installation by Ecosistema Urbano called the "Air Trees".
The red outlined areas in this map show the
planned development outside of the city.
They are a series of three cylindrical structures in the center of oversided traffic circles. The entire development is over sized and the structures needed to match the scale of the place. They are designed to perform multiple functions. They are "Social Dynamizers" creating a center meeting point for the partially full neighborhood. Also since the neighborhood is not 100% full or completed, and was not designed to be pedestrian, many of the social gathering spaces in Spain like cervecerias and cafes cannot be supported by the population. There is nowhere to go. And from what I saw the structures seemed to be doing their job as social hub. I was there around 7:30 in the evening and it was full of kids and parents enjoying the good weather. The center structure has swings and a soft rubberized playground surface with a mound for running and playing. |
A profusion of vines and children
|
 |
| Kids really seem to enjoy rising their bikes around the colored paving circle. |
 |
| The public housing is made from inexpensive materials used in innovative ways in eye popping optimistic colors |
The southern structure had a stepped sunken middle which seemed to be well liked for soccer (the ball can't get away from you!). And featured a running LED display like a stock ticker only showing the local weather.
The northern structure was much different than the other two. It was designed to scoop wind into the silver cylinders covered in fabric where it is sprayed with a mist of water which cools the air and sinks to the bottom where the cooled air is pushed out of vents on the bottom. An outdoor air conditioning! But it did not seem to be on while we were there. But I will return on a hot summer day to see if it is working. 
This structure appeared to have the lushest vines growth maybe due to the cooler temperatures inside.
The solar panels are supposed to create enough additional energy to pay for the upkeep of the structures. But it was unclear how much maintenance is being done. The play surfacing had big holes and there is graffiti everywhere. But it did not seem to lessen anyone's enjoyment of the space. And graffiti is a big problem in Madrid in general. It is mostly tagging, more artistic graffiti i wouldn't mind. Madrid Rio park actually spends a pretty large part of its budget on anti graffiti coatings and DAILY cleaning to discourage taggers. So I was very happy to finally see this project after months of drooling over it on Ecosistema Urbano's website. It lived up to my expectations:)
But this neighborhood is one of the most populated. There are many more that are more desolate and I will take you through many of those as well. They are large in area and so I will need a bike to make those trips more feasible. But I hope to pick it up soon so you can expect more Abandoned Madrid very soon!
Additional Links:
Ecosistema Urbano's portfolio here:
Other articles about the project:
