The Espai Corberó opens its doors this weekend

The Espai Corberó, a dystopian work hidden in the heart of Esplugues de Llobregat and largely unknown to many, opens its doors to the public this weekend, with half-hour guided tours starting at nine in the morning and lasting until after five in the afternoon. With no tickets available, a total of 1,300 people, almost a thousand of them residents of the city, will be able to enter the macro-sculpture conceived by Xavier Corberó (1935-2017), one of the best Catalan artists of the 20th century with works in museums around the world, such as the MoMA in New York, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

The Esplugues City Council has organized the open days after acquiring the unique property with the aim of making it accessible to citizens and preserving the legacy of the Catalan artist, who was closely linked to the city. Since Corberó's death, his family has maintained the space by renting it out for events and advertising campaigns. These include productions for fashion brands like Uterqüe and Miu Miu or 080 fashion shows. But the sculptor's widow, Midu Rica, points out that it was difficult to manage a space of such magnitude and keep it in good condition.

The building, with almost 2,000 square meters, is made up of a successive series of arches, randomly stacked at different levels, accompanied by pillars that do not touch the ground, staircases leading nowhere, and mirrors that deceive the senses ---and, practically, serve to hide the many elevators that were installed---. The sculptor embarked on this ambitious work in 1968, when he acquired the farmhouse Can Cargol. The Espai Corberó was built wall to wall with his home and workshop, where his widow still lives. Although it seems that the arches will continue to grow and reach the sky, Corberó considered the building finished, Rica explains, when he began to close it off and install windows.

In front of the Can Ramoneda farmhouse and next to the Montsió convent, where there is a cloister that had previously been in Portal de l'Àngel and Rambla Catalunya, Espai Corberó surprisingly blends in with the old town of Esplugues. In the background, one can hear the tram, the bells of the adjacent church, Santa Magdalena, and even detect the chickens from a nearby coop. As if its interior, populated with multiple sculptures by Corberó, were not enough, the space also offers a good panoramic view of Esplugues, with views of the Symbol towers, and, beyond, the sea.