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Acxt: Archivo Histórico

Acxt arquitectos designed in Bilbao the Archivo Histórico de Euskadi, organized by floor, depending on the degree of access control of the different uses of the building in order to eliminate the internal partitions and to obtain open brighten spaces.

The building is located in María Díaz de Haro Street, close to the main avenue of the city of Bilbao, the Gran Via.

The program is organized by floor, depending on the degree of access control of the different uses of the building.

The ground floor, first floor and part of the first basement floor are for free access public uses: the main lobby, reception area and several exhibition rooms that can also be used as a multifunction space. Through the lobby on the ground floor, the garden is accessed: a space designed to accommodate different uses such as open-air exhibitions, a reading area or area for film projections.

Actx, Archivo Histórico de Euskadi, Bilbao, Spain — Acxt, Archivo Histórico de Euskadi, Bilbao, Spain

On the second floor is the reading room and documentation consultation area, accessed by the public upon accreditation at reception.

On the remaining floors above ground are the administration areas, laboratories, and documentation processing areas. These are all non-public use areas. Below ground, and also for private use, are the document vaults, meeting rooms and parking facilities. These spaces are accessed directly from the street level by a car lift.

The main facade has been designed as a vibrating glass front that increases the perception of the building, breaking with the flatness of the street and emphasizing its location. The design seeks great transparency, allowing the workings of the building and the structure to be understood from the exterior. The outer glass skin is printed with extracts of texts from some of the documents preserved within the archive, in such a way that the building is not seen as a sealed place, private and closed off from the citizen.

The interior facade has been designed with a language that tries to establish a formal dialogue with the rest of the buildings of the block, while retaining the contemporary character of the building. This facade and garden seeks to project a friendly image to the users of the courtyard.