Intimate and monumental
Concepts that seem contradictory and that however the Francesc Rifé Studio have managed to integrate into the
headquarters of Power Electronics in Llíria (Valencia). In its interiors, wood, in its different formats, has played a
leading role.
33
“To go from monumentality to proportionate
detail,” Francesc Rifé’s quote is the common
thread, “rejects the general idea that large
spaces are inevitably cold ”.
White walnut lattice
And for this purpose, wood has been fundamental:
white walnut lattices run through the
space in different formats connecting areas,
configuring environments, providing warmth
and, at the same time, protecting the interiors
from excessive insulation.
Auditorium: light and sound
In the auditorium, this system of slats acquires
greater complexity and adds partial perpendicular
planes to obtain indoor shade. Acoustic
issues are solved by adding a sound- absorbing
blanket to the upper part of the ceiling, made
of perforated wood, where the lighting is integrated.
The heart of wood
The staircase vertically configures the space.
Made of wood inside and anodized aluminum
on the exterior, its materiality extends along
the interior balconies. On the next level, a circular
bench works as a distributor to the different
work areas: open spaces with translucent
glass enclosures, where they have been incorporated
small islands of relaxation, wrapped
in wooden slats.
On the second floor, the management offices
and meeting rooms, wood is once again
the key: slat system, enclosures and ceilings.
The property also has an interior terrace, an
outdoor space, with vegetation, with circular
pergolas generating sub-spaces.
For the flooring, there is ipe wood, granite, basalt
and different crushed stone in gray tones.
A trail of light
The main façade adopts the same set of materials
that has run through its interior spaces.
Some monoliths, designed by the studio, run
longitudinally across the front of the building
“creating a trace of poetic light throughout
the whole ”.