FOA House 2024: the chosen ones of ARQ

Think inside the box or “Inside the box”, such is the English concept of 40th edition of Casa FOArepresented a real challenge for the designers and architects who dared to intervene in the spaces of the demolished Edificio del Plata.

It happens that the headquarters of the old “Muni” (and further in time, Mercado del Plata) was left uninhabited when the Buenos Aires Government moved to Parque Patricios in 2015 and is only now reopening to the public.

For this, it required a lot of work from the organization and those responsible for each space to maintain the level that Casa FOA requires. The tasksin some cases, were titanic (that alone would perhaps deserve several gold medals) but they were worth it.

“It fills us with pride to know that the exhibition is a trend-setter where many people hope to visit it to see the evolution of the design that is exhibited year after year,” he said. Marcos Malbrangeneral director of Casa FOA.

Perhaps to play with the 40 editions, the exhibition is displayed in 6.200 m2 distributed in 40 spaces which include artistic installations, a cafeteria, an auditorium, a design shop in addition to the interior spaces.

“I can’t believe what we accomplished in nine weeks. “This is a very significant building and is located in a strategic location,” he describes. Catalina Ulloathe architect responsible for the master plan of Casa FOA. “We wanted to play with the concept of thinking outside the box, but just the other way around. Ask ourselves how we are going to use this building and what triggers it brings us to think about the box and inhabit it.”

The renovation is total. From the historical and inalienable elements of FOA, of that “old guard”, there is no one left. The legendary and recognized figures were leaving (one of the last stalwarts was Viviana Melamed, who was almost uninterrupted until 2022, and Julio Oropel with José Luis Zacarías Otiñano in 2023) and space was opened for them to emerge new talents. Also, the federalization of the sample brought some breeze from the Cordoba edition with Mariana Caruncho and Marta Moraschi.

Thus, we can discover young talents, such as Rob Ortiz (who opened a venue this year on Arenales Street and debuts in this edition) or attend as privileged spectators the growth of Nicolás Mogetta and Fernando Russiwho received the Mercedes Malbrán de Campos Gold Medal for the second consecutive time. This year, thanks to the blue Auditorium loaded with meaning, functionality and technology. It should be remembered that Mogetta also won the Silver Medal in 2022.

another question to stand out of this edition are the spaces that thought a conceptual contribution beyond showing trends in design, architecture and interior design. And, above all, a special highlight for those who thought about recover the identity of the Plata Building and the memory of what it was. But not from nostalgia but from reconversion to new possible spaces and to unite history with the future with an invisible red thread.

“We wanted to replicate the building’s characteristic tanks, two sculptures that in modern buildings could replace the domes. We took shape and color literally to generate this box cut as if the tank were spilling its liquid. And on the 360 ​​screen you can identify Avenida 9 de Julio formed with these water bubbles that submerge us in this liquid,” described Nicolás Mogetta the Space N°12 Auditorium.

“We found a large space in ruins. And we had the budget condition. We had to generate the box that FOA asked for and think within it. The quick and economical resource we found was to make this projected cellulose box that, in turn, provided the acoustics that an auditorium needs. And then, we worked a lot on audio and lighting to generate different situations and climates. We use cold light when the rest of FOA is illuminated with warm light,” added Fernando Russi about this space that play with full and emptyon either side of the screen.

“Our artistic installation is a call to connect with the flow of nature and life. Each of these totems is an altar that houses an ancient species that holds a lot of information,” he says. Eva Gómez Soto, from the Gsem Studioreferring to the fern and the labyrinthine and artistic installation of the Space N°35.

“When we came to see the building there was rubble everywhere, everything was really destroyed and there were some impeccably beautiful ferns on the floor. We think about ferns as the connection of what was and what is going to be,” adds Goméz Soto, praising the resilient qualities of the plant. “That he survives so much makes us think about life itself. And for that reason, we created a space for connection with all the senses. In fact, the music was created especially for this place.”

Public Toilets is the space presented by Inés Muzzio from IM Estudio. It is supported by one of the old functions of the building: to be the office of the Offenses Directorate, a remembered place where those who had to pay for speeding or bad parking went. To bring the previous use to the present, Muzzio wallpapered the bathroom stalls with the fines, put up a bright and dynamic poster with the possible “excuses” of the offenders and also recorded them so that they could be heard on repeat.

He Space N°14 It is organized with a main sector of basins in the shape of pillars with backlit vertical mirrors, in another place are the cubicles and, finally, the living room with deep blue circular carpet and armchairs from the seventies by the artist Margarita Paksa.

To propose your design Coworking (Space N°4), Marcela Rodríguez and Lorena Spínola, from the PQR Studioinvestigated how work was done in the building in the 70s. “Clearly, they changed significantly. It occurred to us to work with the Fibonacci sacred geometry scheme and the golden ratio,” Rodríguez explained. And he added that what was most difficult for them was finding the phrase to capture on a wall: “more essence, less appearance.”

A Rob Ortiz Banco Hipotecario invited him to design the Living (Space No. 17). wanted evoke the brutalist architecture of Clorindo Testa. He said that it was “a great challenge to be able to bring it literally, on the ceiling for example, without leaving my mark aside.”

Just as the former Bank of London (today, Mortgage) is present in Casa FOA, there is another architectural icon represented in an almost fetish object: the luminaries from the winery (Space N°21) who worship the House on the Stream by Amancio Williams and Delfina Gálvez.

He Bonic Studio, by Victoria Babnik and Maximiliano Mulquideveloped its proposal around a large central table thinking of it as a meeting room. Above it, the iconic luminaire.

A special highlight deserves the Space N°18 Kitchen with daily dining room by Johnson Acero, by Rodrigo Battaglia and Luciana Szechter. The proposal won the Silver Medal.

Also, at Space N°37 Meeting Kitchen. The proposal of Caruncho and Moraschi He was surprised with the pasta hanging in a closet and the eggs located in a drawer.

Unavoidable, due to its location but also its stridency, is the Space No. 1 Entrance Hall Juan Caram and Diego Segurola to celebrate 10 years of NH Collection.

Before finishing the immersive experience, you must go through the Space N°5 Living room with desk and bedroom, designed by Florencia Basile, Gisela Bezek and Oscar Gilfrom Fontenla. And for “The Forest Box” (Space N°40) by Tomás Nadares.