The winning proposal turned out to be the one presented under the slogan "Trace Hidden" presented by Norman Foster and Carlos Rubio studios. The competition was attended by a wide and concurred cast of architects, in a competition procedure, in which 47 architectural teams took part, that developed in two phases. The first, fully open, ended up in June with the selection of eight teams.
Among this selection of finalists was the proposal of the Spanish team Cruz y Ortiz Arquitectos, which took part in the contest without partners.
Description of project by Cruz y Ortiz Arquitectos
HALL OF REALMS OF THE BUEN RETIRO ROYAL PALACE
The building should not be referred to as Hall of Realms, since the only part that keeps its original condition is the inside. It would be more accurate to say that the former Army Museum should be remodeled.
The building we found is the result of a series of interventions along many centuries, from its construction in the early 17th, to the last intervention in the second half of the 20th century.
We decided first to eliminate those less valuable elements, as the mansard roof floor built back in 1905 and the central bay in the south side in order to introduce later the suitable modificationsto adapt the building to the new requirements.
The elimination of the referred partsendows the building with better clarity both functionally and formally. This leads us to take the exhibition program of 1.600 m2, the smaller of the surfaces requested in the Program.
The bay in the south side is replaced by a construction able to hold the new access point and welcome areas in its ground floor and the cafeteria and the bookstorein its first floor. Gathering the most important elements of the project, this new part of the building tries to house the functions that could hardly be included in the existing one.
