This work of EMBT (completed after the death of Enric Miralles) represents a new mode of urban planning in Barcelona. Originally established as a green area of new urban luxury, the site then served as the Olympic Village and as a key influential factor prior to the construction of the FORUM in the district of Sant Marti. 1. We start by forming continuous slopes. 2. The water should be “moving water” and should be coherent with the general slope. 3. The hill should have its part. 4. The surface, which is not hill or valley, should be an interesting promenade …. Many, many scales and possibilities. 5. The Diagonal-to-be is a promenade balcony.

Miralles wrote in 1997 about the park:

Near the Torre Agbar you‘ll find a group of office buildings placed perpendicular to the Av. Diagonal. One of the most astonishing structures is architect David Chipperfield‘s b720.

The building features overtures on each side of its GRC colored facade, and remains a fascinating structure along the Avenida Diagonal — showing similar characteristics to the other architectural feats in terms of its volume and alternating coatings or “skins” combining stone, precast concrete panels and translucent glass exteriors.

This building was designed by Catalan architect Enric Ruiz + Cloud 9 and promoted by the Consorsi of the Free Zone; located between the streets Roc Boronat (recently extended to the Avenida Diagonal) and the street Sancho d‘Avila. The building is conceived as a forum for communication and the gathering of business in Barcelona, as well as serving the audiovisual sector. Currently under construction, the building serves as a manifesto of Spain‘s new technology and architecture, forging constructive innovations in these arenas.

This new public space designed by Jean Nouvel is perhaps one of the most controversial projects recently developed in Barcelona. The idea of closing the park to protect people from the traffic on Avenida Diagonal has been seen as something negative in an area which by its nature should be open, and now within the excessive design of streets and gardens collides with the way Barcelona has been approaching its public space for the past 20 years.

Of all the buildings that comprise the Forum, the blue triangle designed by Herzog and de Meuron was expected to be the symbol of the collection; although that selection ended up going to the pergola photovoltaics as a symbol of sustainability. Due to difficulties with maintenance, the “triangle“ hasn‘t been able to serve Barcelona as well as a building designed by the same team has done for Beijing during the Olympics, covering all the expectations of an “iconic” structure. In contrast to the surrounding towers, the triangular building extends horizontally, favoring the natural congregation of public uses both internally and outside in the neighboring square.

Agbar Tower, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, is Barcelona‘s tallest building. At 142 meters high, the rounded structure features a skin of changing color pixelated tiles. The tower serves as the starting point for a connection between the Diagonal and the seaside, and has been the catalyst in transforming the 22@ district. It will be a key element in the redevelopment of Plaza de las Glorias Catalan, just as Cerdá once imagined.

Parc del forum is like a huge 167,000 square meter carpet paved with colored asphalt. The Forum Esplanade, with its solar panels, creates a complex geometry situated between the seafront, the Ronda Litoral and the purification factory; folding in at its edges. Foreign Office Architects (FOA) designed the seaside park, which whips concrete and trees up from the land like icing.

Tracing the Diagonal in its descent towards the sea, we come across the Campus Audiovisual: a set of buildings dedicated to the audiovisual realm, rehabilitating old factories to facilitate new industry. Of all the new buildings in this area, the Mediapro tower — designed by architect Carlos Ferrater — is the most elegant. The project includes two slender towers of different heights, placed perpendicular to the Avenida Diagonal and connected to one another by a transparent tunnel. On the Avenida Diagonal, these two towers provide a continuation of striking architecture from their surroundings, and offer a fluid access of street activity to the bustle of the lobby and public cafeteria to the offices above.