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The Santa Mònica opens “SOLAR INDEX”
A climate shelterexploring solar radiation visible
SOLAR INDEX from NAKED SPACE ©Jordi Play
As the weather heats up, the Santa Mònica is opening SOLAR INDEX to the public, an installation by NAKED SPACE that transforms the arts centre’s terrace into a temporary, climate shelter that reacts to sunlight. The installation is part of the Barcelona climate shelter network and the #RavalEstiuEducatiu community project, offering a free, cool and accessible space for local residents and visitors during the summer months.
SOLAR INDEX is the project selected this year through the open call promoted by the Santa Mònica to convert the terrace into a climate shelter during the summer. The design features a striking UV-reactive fabric that changes colour, depending on the intensity of solar radiation. Thus, the installation transforms light and heat into a shared experience while inviting visitors to use the terrace in a more pleasant and mindful way.
The installation consists of two main elements. Above, a circular canopy made from UV-protective fabric filters solar radiation while maintaining an open relationship with the surrounding environment. Below, an inflatable structure creates an open, habitable area designed for rest, protection from the heat and social interaction.
Beyond its practical function as a climate shelter, SOLAR INDEX is an invitation to reflect on how heat, sunlight and environmental conditions affect the way we live together and use public space.
The project also engages in dialogue with the current exhibition The Assault of Illusion, and puts forward an architecture based on the physical response of materials rather than digital simulation. In a context increasingly dominated by screens and artificial images, SOLAR INDEX asserts direct, bodily experience of the environment.
With this project, NAKED SPACE continues its research into temporary structures and spaces for collective urban coexistence. The project was conceived out of the logic of reuse, and the materials in the installation will have a second life in the collective’s future projects.
An artistic, public climate shelter in the Raval
With this initiative, the Santa Mònica is reinforcing its commitment to understanding art as a right and the public space as a common good, fostering areas for rest, gathering together and coexistence that are open to all. The centre’s terrace thus becomes a space to share, rest and interact with the environment through an artistic experience linked to current climate challenges.
The centre is also participating in the community project #RavalEstiuEducatiu and provides indoor spaces, such as the Bar Lounge and the participatory space, and outdoor spaces, such as the terrace and SOLAR INDEX, for resting, connecting to Wi-Fi, reading, playing or relaxing, especially with local children and young people in mind. This is the seventh year of the Raval Community Education Group project, promoted by the Fundació Tot Raval, in which around 600 people take part every summer thanks to the joint work of some 40 social and educational organisations and neighbourhood facilities.
The Santa Mònica climate shelter is part of the centre’s commitment to environmental sustainability and critical and accessible culture. This commitment has been recognised with the Environmental Quality Assurance Award (DGQA) in the visual arts venues category, awarded by the Catalan Ministry of Climate Action.
