The exhibition MIRALLES. A quarts de quatre… is part of the MIRALLES events, promoted by the Fundació Enric Miralles with the support of the Barcelona City Council and the Generalitat de Catalunya, in order to honour the figure of the Catalan architect Enric Miralles in his many facets as a creator, and whose death marked 20 years in 2020.
The curators of the MIRALLES events are Benedetta Tagliabue and Joan Roig i Duran, and also collaborating are the Miralles Tagliabue EMBT architecture studio, the Escola Tècnica Superior d’Arquitectura (ETSAB) and the Col·legi d’Arquitectes de Catalunya (COAC).
The expression “A quarts de quatre” in Catalan indicates uncertainty. It refers to a period of time that can range from shortly after the first quarter of an hour to shortly before three quarters of an hour. This is the starting point to explain the way of working of Miralles, an architect who approached projects collecting a large amount of information, analyzing all variables exhaustively and handling multiple unknowns at the same time, with an enormous capacity to manage uncertainty in the initial phase of the orders.
The exhibition highlights four of Miralles’ most emblematic built works: Igualada Cemetery, Huesca Sports Hall, Santa Caterina Market, and the Scottish Parliament Building. Each of these projects marked turning points in his creative evolution and are presented through Miralles’ own sketches, drawings, models, and photographs, making them accessible to the general public. Although focused on Miralles’ individuality, the exhibition also emphasizes the collaborative nature of his practice, recognizing the significant roles of his partners, including Carme Pinós and Benedetta Tagliabue. The exhibition forms part of a larger series of events across Barcelona aiming to explore his impact not only in architecture but also in design and artistic creation.
