{"id":596170,"date":"2026-08-17T16:34:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T16:34:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/596170\/"},"modified":"2026-08-17T16:34:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T16:34:11","slug":"carved-travertine-transforms-paving-and-planting-across-spanish-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/596170\/","title":{"rendered":"carved travertine transforms paving and planting across spanish town"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Travertine Extends Banyoles\u2019 Historic Urban Landscape in Spain<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In Banyoles, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.designboom.com\/tag\/architecture-in-spain\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Spain<\/a>, MIAS Architects completes the latest phase of its long-term <a href=\"https:\/\/www.designboom.com\/tag\/renovation-architecture-and-design\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">refurbishment<\/a> of the historic town center, extending the intervention to Pla\u00e7a d\u2019en Ges and the surrounding streets of Sant Martiri\u00e0 and Sant Antoni. The project continues an urban strategy developed over several decades, using locally sourced lacustrine <a href=\"https:\/\/www.designboom.com\/tag\/marble-and-stone-design\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">travertine<\/a> as the primary material for streets, public spaces, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.designboom.com\/tag\/street-furniture\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">furniture<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.designboom.com\/tag\/landscape-architecture-and-design\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">landscape<\/a> elements.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The project began with an initial sketch approximately 30 years ago, followed by the first construction phase two decades ago. The latest intervention continues the approach established in the original scheme, in which travertine was used to repave medieval streets and squares while exposing the historic water canals and creating a continuous pedestrian landscape. In the new phase, the material is extended beyond the horizontal plane to form benches, edges, planting beds, and changes in level.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" bad-src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"carved travertine transforms paving, furniture, and planting across spanish historic old town - 1\" width=\"818\" height=\"446\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unveiled-the-final-phase-of-banyoles-old-town-project-6-6a746eb9832f7.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" lazyload\"\/><br \/>all images by Pau L\u00f3pez<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Carved Stone Reorganizes Pla\u00e7a d\u2019en Ges and Surrounding Streets<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Large travertine blocks are cut, fractured, and carved to reveal different layers within the stone. Their surfaces alternate between smooth horizontal planes and rough vertical cuts, creating a material language that references the surrounding facades, water channels, and geological strata. Around the existing plane tree and cast-iron fountain in Pla\u00e7a d\u2019en Ges, the travertine forms a continuous perimeter that defines a smaller urban space within the square. The former traffic island is reorganized as a pedestrian area, with the stone simultaneously functioning as paving, seating, landscape edging, and planting infrastructure.<\/p>\n<p>The intervention by MIAS Architects <a href=\"https:\/\/miasarquitectes.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">design studio<\/a> extends the same material palette across the square and adjacent streets, allowing the individual elements to remain part of a coherent urban system. Emerging stone-cutting technologies are combined with traditional craftsmanship and on-site adaptation, enabling individual blocks to be configured according to their specific position and function.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The project treats paving, furniture, and planting as interconnected components of the public realm. Travertine blocks establish thresholds, seating areas, level changes, and small planted spaces, allowing the material to operate at different scales throughout the intervention. The streets and square are reorganized as a continuous surface that clarifies pedestrian movement and softens changes in level. Previously fragmented or residual areas are incorporated into the pedestrian network, transforming narrow streets into civic routes and defining Pla\u00e7a d\u2019en Ges as a more contained urban space. The material strategy also maintains a close relationship with the scale of the surrounding historic buildings. Minimal metal detailing and discreet lighting complement the travertine without introducing additional visual elements that compete with the existing urban fabric.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" bad-src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"carved travertine transforms paving, furniture, and planting across spanish historic old town - 2\" width=\"818\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unveiled-the-final-phase-of-banyoles-old-town-project-5-6a746eb9832b8.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" lazyload\"\/><br \/>MIAS Architects completes the latest phase of Banyoles\u2019 historic center refurbishment<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Long-Term Material Strategy by MIAS Continues Across Banyoles<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The latest phase extends the architectural language established by the earlier refurbishment, using the same local stone in new forms and applications. Its transformation from paving into seating, retaining edges, planting beds, and other urban elements demonstrates how a consistent material system can adapt to changing spatial requirements while maintaining continuity across different phases of construction. By combining digital stone fabrication with traditional techniques and site-specific adjustments, MIAS Architects continues to develop the potential of lacustrine travertine as both a construction material and an organizing element for public space. The completed intervention reinforces the long-term strategy of establishing a coherent pedestrian landscape across Banyoles\u2019 historic center while connecting the town\u2019s material history with contemporary methods of urban design.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" bad-src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"carved travertine transforms paving, furniture, and planting across spanish historic old town - 3\" width=\"818\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unveiled-the-final-phase-of-banyoles-old-town-project-1-6a746eb983161.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" lazyload\"\/><br \/>lacustrine travertine extends across Pla\u00e7a d\u2019en Ges and surrounding streets<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" bad-src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"carved travertine transforms paving, furniture, and planting across spanish historic old town - 4\" width=\"818\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unveiled-the-final-phase-of-banyoles-old-town-project-3-6a746eb983236.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" lazyload\"\/><br \/>the local stone forms paving, seating, planting beds, and landscape edges<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" bad-src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" alt=\"carved travertine transforms paving, furniture, and planting across spanish historic old town - 5\" width=\"818\" height=\"545\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/unveiled-the-final-phase-of-banyoles-old-town-project-2-6a746eb9831ed.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" lazyload\"\/><br \/>travertine repaves historic streets while revealing the town\u2019s water canals<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Travertine Extends Banyoles\u2019 Historic Urban Landscape in Spain \u00a0 In Banyoles, Spain, MIAS Architects completes the latest phase&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":596171,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[17443,307,304,305,306,308,93,61,60,19988,48110,1014],"class_list":["post-596170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-architecture-in-spain","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-landscape-architecture-and-design","tag-marble-and-stone-design","tag-renovation-and-restoration-architecture-and-design"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=596170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=596170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=596170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}