We are inaugurating ‘Bodies and Spaces’, a reinterpretation of Gaudí’s Invisible Garden

Torrents d’Art, the Arts in Health programme of Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, is inaugurating the exhibition Bodies and Spaces: Inhabiting Care, a collective artistic proposal that invites us to rediscover the Invisible Garden, the modernist ensemble located in the Sant Boi de Llobregat precinct and considered a key space in Antoni Gaudí’s creative evolution, with connections to works such as the Sagrada Família, Casa Milà or Park Güell.

Built between 1903 and 1912, the Invisible Garden is a unique heritage site made up of grottoes, an old lake and trencadís benches that dialogue with nature and transform it. Over a year and a half, mental health service users, multidisciplinary artists, cultural facilitators and members of the public have worked together to offer an artistic, social and humanist reinterpretation of this space, building bridges between art, health and community.

A project born from a workshop dedicated to Gaudí

The project was developed within the framework of a workshop focused on the figure and creative processes of Gaudí, which combined research, creation and artistic experimentation. The process began with direct knowledge of the Invisible Garden, the study of the architect’s working methods and the reading of David Agulló’s thesis, which structures the space into three main areas: the square of the benches, the cave-waterfall and the chapel of the Virgin. Drawing on these references, the group has built its own narrative that integrates architecture, history, symbolism and the community dimension.

The work has been carried out collectively and collaboratively, with roles that emerged naturally throughout the phases of ideation, design and production. As Andrea Martínez, coordinator of Torrents d’Art, explains, “a key part of the project has been putting ourselves in Gaudí’s shoes, recovering artisanal and experimental processes such as trencadís, the construction of models – first on a small scale and later on a larger scale – and the study of architectural forms such as the hyperboloid, using techniques inspired by the architect’s original methods”.

Beyond architecture, the exhibition also highlights lesser-known aspects of Gaudí’s work, such as his relationship with materials, the creation of his own colours and scents, Oriental influences or the social and community dimension of the Invisible Garden.

 An exhibition framed within the celebration of Gaudí Year

Bodies and Spaces: Inhabiting Care is part of the programme promoted by Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu and Sant Boi Town Council, with the support of the Department of Culture of the Generalitat, to commemorate the centenary of the death of Antoni Gaudí. The aim is to bring the modernist universe closer to the public and to highlight local heritage as a space for creation, reflection and community.

The exhibition has received advice from architect David Agulló and collaboration from the Department of Culture, the ICEC, the Ventós Foundation and Sant Boi Town Council.

The visit to the exhibition, which lasts one hour, will be conducted in Catalan.

The meeting point is: Torrents d’Art Cultural Centre. C. Doctor Antoni Pujadas 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat (Montserrat building):  https://share.google/9oOCIYsZFQ64ueian

• To visit the exhibition, you only need to register in advance for free.