golden sheet made out of emergency blankets covers 16th-century convent patio in spain

golden sheet covers 16th century patio in spain

 

designers nicola dario baldassarre, salvatore dentamaro, francesco di salvo and ilyass erraklaouy introduce ‘gold digger’, a public installation comprised of golden thermal sheets covering the patio of the 16th century sant jordi and sant domènec convent in tarragona, spain. the eye-catching installation explores the world of curiosity and the desire for discovery. it was created as part of tortosa’s a cel obert festival, a festival of ephemeral interventions held annually since 2014, where ephemeral art transforms unknown historical spaces into a stage for artistic creations, while reclaiming the city’s architectural heritage.

image © antonio bouzas, unless stated otherwise

 

 

installed in a historic convent 

 

the ‘gold digger’ installation is set within the patio of the sant jordi and sant domènec dels reials colégis, a historic convent that was built in the 16th century to educate the moors. this site serves as a direct legacy of a period of economic and social splendour in the city and is the most important work of the civil renaissance in catalonia.

 

the work is composed of 112 thermal blankets joined together, covering the patio completely. the installation presents two different faces, creating a duality between two spaces: alternating warmth-cold, light-shadow, gold-silver tones fill the courtyard, providing interesting visuals to the visitors. the gold side faces the courtyard while the silver side faces the building, thus creating a chromatic difference between the entrance and the upper courtyard.

 

 

piquing the users’ curiosity

 

the large sheet is suspended 1.30 metres above the ground and is perforated at specific points so that light can pass through it. therefore, the first impression upon entering is that of a dark space with a silver face, but with points of light entering through the circular slits. in this way, the installation piques the users’ curiosity and they feel the urge to find out what is behind the curtain.

 

users are encouraged to crouch down in order to reach the light and cross the canvas and enter a different world — from the silvery darkness of the entrance to the golden light of the courtyard. the wind, always present in tortosa, moves the fabric, creating new reflections of light and a sound similar to the waves of the sea.

 

 

 

 

changing through the course of the day

 

the color and effect of the installation change according to the time of day: in the middle of the day the light enters directly from above and the reflection becomes almost blinding, at sunset the golden color becomes almost pink. at night the contrast is between darkness and light and is accentuated by the presence of artificial lighting. the installation was the winner of the festival where visitors actively interacted, discovering not only sculptural details of the courtyard’s renaissance ornamentation, but also each other within the installation. as from the top floor from where the whole installation can be seen, especially the children running under the fabric and then sticking their heads out of the holes and waving to each other.