Systems

Abstract

The video SYSTEMS - METAMADRID SUPERCLUSTER is part of the audiovisual documents exhibited at the 2nd International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam by the European University of Madrid, under the supervision of Professor José Luis Esteban Penelas.

It represents a visual abstraction of the real connections that exist between the Mediterranean coast and the cities of Madrid, Barcelona, and Valencia. Like electrical impulses, these connections configure a new, subjective reality that alters physical distances, bringing Madrid closer to the Mediterranean coast, as if through forces of attraction arising from the new links created by high-speed rail lines, both digital and physical.

Metamadrid presents a wide range of proposals, new perspectives, and reflections on the urban growth of Madrid, the Mediterranean coast, and the areas affected by the passage of the new high-speed rail lines. It encompasses a diversity of overlapping and interconnected layers of information at human, urban, and territorial scales, in which critical theories are explored, such as “Superplaces,” micro-scalar planning systems like “Megaurban Cellular Apoptosis,” post-industrial hypercities, hyperfragmentation, and shifting discourses on Supercities, their architectures, and their position in today’s globalized world.

Authors of the video: Raúl Carpintero, Gonzalo Gutiérrez, and Pablo De Souza.

Curator: Professor J. L. Esteban Penelas

Layout and final editing: Absolut Media and Void7.

The video SYSTEMS METAMADRID SUPERCLUSTER was published by the European University of Madrid, with the support of the Regional Government of Madrid, in the DVD Booklet of the 2nd International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam, METAMADRID (ISBN 84-7207-174-X). These works received recognition from the Community of Madrid, with an Honourable Mention in the 21st Urban Planning, Architecture, and Public Works Awards, granted by the Department of Urban Planning and Housing of the Madrid City Council (pp. 185–191, ISBN 84-7812-681-1).