>cala abarca

title             cala abarca

location      caleta abarca, viña del mar, chile

design        pol taylor + marcelo bernal + ata [engineering]

fabrication desmontables sa

date            2010

                   

 

narrative>>. in 2010 grupo K took the concession of the caleta abarca beach in downtown viña del mar, and they tasked us with the design of a landmark for an abandoned concrete pilar on the site. we developed a proposal for a tension membrane surface that was inspired by the form of the cala lilly, a popular and prolific flower in the region. the decodability of the form, its spatial development under rotation, and the semantic resonance between cala and caleta, the chilean word for a small natural harbour, were keys to its acceptance in chile’s garden city. the fabrication of the membrane was adjudicated by desmontables sa. who introduced some additional structure but the final form is almost identical to the design developed by sur-face, and the cala has survived storms and diverse opinions to become a curious landmark identified with the city.