Laia Noal IN RESiDENCE at the School Pau Claris

My key idea is to think about and analyse the relationship we have with nature in the city and, in particular, in the neighbourhood where we live, which is very diverse in this respect.

We could start by asking ourselves how we define the term nature, the difference we make between natural and artificial, which spaces in the city are natural and where they are found. Based on this, we can ask ourselves why and how nature is domesticated in cities and what is the role played by urban planning.

The fact that the neighbourhood of La Ribera is a territory with many layers of urban planning history linked to changes in the natural environment that we can investigate may be of great interest in this respect:

  • 12th Century: Palau Berenguer (Museu Picasso) - La Ribera
  • 19th Century: Parc de la Ciutadella - Universal Exhibition 1888
  • 19th Century: Eixample - Pla Cerdà


We could start the project by working with current and historical maps that clearly show the transformation of the city and by walking through the different areas to get in touch with places that the pupils are probably already familiar with but from a different perspective. I suggest doing this through photography and drawing.