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CASA DEL RELOJ
(J.M. Arganzuela)
Pº de la Chopera, 10

HOW TO GET THE VENUE BY
PUBLIC TRANSPORT

By underground:
Legazpi (Lines 3 and 6)
exit Plaza de Legazpi

By bus:
6, 8, 18, 19, 22, 45, 47, 59, 62, 76, 78, 79, 85, 86, 88, 123, 148, 247, L3, L6

A public transport card will be provided to every delegate
 

A little of history….

Work began on the municipal slaughterhouse, in 1910. Under the direction of Luis Bellido, it was decided to build the slaughterhouse in the Arganzuela meadow, an ideal location due to its proximity to the river, sufficient distance from Madrid’s population at that time, nearby railway facilities and the fact that it was municipal property. Work did not end until 1925 due to the complexity of the project. Engineer Eugenio Ribera also took part in its construction. Originally it comprised thirteen neo-mudéjar style buildings made of brick, the material characteristic of Madrids architecture at the beginning of 20th century. Each building housed a different activity: the complex was designed to be a small productive city in which everything formed part of a well-organized industrial process. In this complex Bellido surpassed the existing utilitarian architecture employed for this type of establishment by using practical, economical and simple construction materials and forms without sacrificing beauty. He created a pure local style. This group of buildings originally occupied an area of 165.415 square meters with the following boundaries: Pº de la Chopera; Santa Catalina; río Manzanares; and Sta María de la Cabeza.

The Matadero was comprised ten buildings in the complex: three of the buildings were formerly used for cutting the throats of calves, sheep and pigs and two of them for the cattle; one building was where the animals were gutted, their inners sold and their hides dried; one was used as a market and slaughterhouse for poultry; two were devoted to stabling, displaying and selling sheep and pigs; and one was employed for airing and hanging up meat as well as containing refrigeration and a garage.

Activity in the slaughterhouse began to decrease as of 1973 when the facilities became obsolete. After several attempts to renew its installation in accordance with Madrid´s new needs and sanitary requirements, the slaughterhouse closed totally in 1996.

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Nowadays ... MATADERO MADRID PROJECT. Venue for the Second International Congress: Citizens and mobility management

After its closing, the Department of Building Conservation of the Town Hall of Madrid began the systematic rehabilitation of the buildings of the complex, in order to be used as containers of cultural, social, sport and administrative activities of the Town hall. At first, under the direction of Rafael Fernández Rañada, La Casa del Reloj (the clock house) was rehabilitated and converted in the headquarters of the Junta Municipal del Distrito de Arganzuela and the nave de terneras (veal building) into a cultural and sport space. Afterwards, Guillermo Costa reconstructed the nave de patatas (potato building) and converted it into the Cristal Palace. In 1992, this space was transformed into a  greenhouse maintaining its old steel and glass structure constructed by Luis Bellido between 1908 and 1988. The actual greenhouse is divided into 4 microclimate spaces, where water plays a special role. A garden is outside, with a big fountain, plane trees and rosebushes.

Furthermore, the City Town Hall has included in the plan to join the premises of the fruit and vegetable market. This market is located in Legazpi Square, where the Samur headquarters and the offices of the Town Hall trade union are also located. These premises will add 35.000 square meters to the 50.000 square meters of the slaughterhouse.



Since 1996 Costa continued the structural consolidation of the facades and roofs of 7 buildings during different phases without a predefined use. The old municipal slaughterhouse is one of the most unique and interesting industrial buildings of twentieth century Madrid architecture. Therefore, in 2006 the Madrid Town Hall presented the definitive conversion project for all the entire: Matadero de Madrid.

Madrid City Council, in partnership with public and private institutions, is seeking to convert a city centre plot of 148,300 m2 into an ambitious cultural centre housing the facilities of an expansive contemporary Project. In recent years, several initiatives have consolidated the regeneration of the complex. For example the cow shed was transformed into the premises of the National Ballet and the National Dance Company. The buildings of the slaughterhouse will house the literature and reading center (casa del lector), the ARCO collection contemporary art centre, and a centre for the promotion of architecture, interior design and landscaping.

Programming will focus on promotion, communication, production and inter-disciplinary training in the fields of plastic arts, visual arts, stage arts, music, literature, architecture, town planning, design, fashion, gastronomy and new media.

Plastic Arts

Painting, sculpture, engraving, installations, video art… Matadero Madrid's programming in plastic arts will be wide and varied. By means of a partnership agreement between the Region of Madrid, IFEMA and Madrid City Council, the ARCO Collection - covering more or less the full range of trends in contemporary art - will be shown as selected temporary exhibitions, featuring talks and workshops on key concepts, expressionism, minimalist trends, geometries and figuration.

Visaul Arts / New Media

The visual arts will also have an important role in the Matadero Madrid programming, including cinema, photography, video and new media.

• Ongoing cinema programming, from experimental or independent film to more commercial works, represented by different programmes and cycles.

• Cinema, documentary and photography festivals such as the Documenta Madrid International Documentary Festival and the PhotoEspaña International Festival of Photography and Visual Arts, as well as launches and premières.

• Exhibitions, training activities and programs to support creativity in photography, cinema, video and new media.

Theatre and Dance

Matadero Madrid will devote a large part of its facilities and resources to theatre and dance programming, open to different genres and proposals, and for different types of audience: large-scale theatrical productions, performances, drama readings, multidisciplinary shows, street theatre, choreography, projections, special themes, workshops, and master classes.

Matadero Madrid will include a space for reflection and debate, managed and programmed by El Teatro Español (the Spanish National Theatre), where the new avant garde trends and stage languages can confront each other.

The presence of the National Dance Company and the Spanish National Ballet will also be the driving force behind the most contemporary production and training proposals.
Matadero Madrid will additionally play host to Madrid's important festivals and events, helping to make it the home of the most daring shows and performances.

Music

Matadero Madrid will be committed to music, with its own programme of concerts, cycles and festivals in many different styles, as well as tour dates and other events linked to its programme, including Veranos de la Villa, the Madrid Jazz Festival and Cultura Urbana.

In addition, it will offer a programme of courses, seminars and workshops specializing in the field of music, and provide rehearsal space and studios.

Moreover, the live music venues will provide wide-ranging, quality night-time entertainment, thereby reflecting one of the most important aspects of urban culture.

In spring and summer, the music program will take to the streets, moving out into Matadero Madrid's open air spaces.

Design

Matadero Madrid will be a reference point for information on design and its promotion, a key aspect of cultural and economic development. Thanks to the participation of the Association of Madrid Designers (DIMAD), design, in its manifold forms (graphic, industrial and web), will have a permanent place in the programming, which will include exhibitions, experimentation programmes and training activities. The Matadero Madrid logo itself is the work of a team of prestigious designers, resulting from the collaboration between DIMAD and the City Council.

The design centre, a central part of Matadero Madrid, will include everything from the experimental to teaching activities, as well as examples from everyday life. It will be another platform for interaction between companies, design professionals, students and citizens.

Architecture

Architecture, town planning and contemporary landscaping, which are emerging as new forms of artistic expression, will all have a permanent presence at Matadero Madrid.

Promotion, experimentation, and information on contemporary architecture are the principal objectives of the Matadero Madrid architectural centre, which will feature the collaboration of the Official Madrid Architects' College Foundation.

Planned activities include the establishment of an international ephemeral architecture competition, to take place in a pavilion of special architectural value situated within the Matadero Madrid grounds. The building will hold exhibitions, performances, artistic displays and receptions.

Literature / Reading

Matadero Madrid will be a platform for literary promotion and marketing, and will feature a special area in which Madrid's people can come together and enjoy literature and reading: the Casa del Lector (Reading House). Sponsored by the Germán Sánchez Ruipérez Foundation, it will be responsible for activities designed to develop a relationship between adults, youths, children and reading.

The Casa del Lector will be a place for literature information, training, research, experimentation and promotion, in accordance with a wide-ranging concept, stretching from the printed word to the new communicative platforms; from the linguistic to the audiovisual, with special emphasis on the role of new technologies and media. Its essence is the idea of reading as a tool for knowledge.

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