Beautiful Golden Screened Indra Office Tower Enlivens Barcelona’s Poblenou

The beautiful Indra Corporate Building in <a href="http://inhabitat.com/two-gorgeous-cascading-vertical-gardens-spruce-up-replays-barcelona-store/" target="_blank">Barcelona</a>, Spain looks more like a gorgeous rendering than an actual architectural construction. The golden tower, designed by <a href="http://www.b720.com/" target="_blank"> b720 Architects</a>, sits in a newly rehabbed section of the formerly industrial neighborhood, Poblenou. Indra, along with many other big companies, will relocate their <a href="http://inhabitat.com/a-m-a-headquarters-in-madrid-is-a-big-steely-building-with-a-tiny-footprint/" target="_blank">headquarters</a> to the area in an effort to re-enliven the desolate industrial land.

The lean, <a href="http://inhabitat.com/trapezoid-shaped-eye-bank-building-hugs-a-slope-of-stepped-green-terraces/" target="_blank">trapezoidal building</a> sits on a two storey rectangular base, which houses the entrance, service rooms and garage. The remaining ten floors seem to float above the base, extending toward the surrounding streets. The <a href="http://inhabitat.com/asggs-aerodynamic-wuhan-greenland-center-to-be-worlds-4th-tallest-building/" target="_blank">aerodynamic</a> shape was designed to deflect wind gusts, which sleekly move around the façade.

The Indra Building’s façade is a <a href="http://inhabitat.com/copper-louvered-provins-police-station-sits-lightly-on-unesco-world-heritage-site/" target="_blank">large glass curtain </a>wall of panels, which flood each office in the building with natural light. Some of the glass panels open in, to allow natural ventilation throughout the building.

The exterior has been treated with a multi-purpose decorative shell. The glass skin is encased with the a golden mesh fabric, made from panels of stainless steel. The mesh fabric <a href="http://inhabitat.com/double-skinned-arca-regler-facility-powered-by-geothermic-probes/" target="_blank">protects the interior from solar gain</a>, having a shade coefficient of 50%.

It also creates privacy during daytime, and creates a light and airy appearance to the façade. About a quarter of of the golden screens have 90 centimeter spherical cuts in them, some convex and some concave, which give the luminous exterior and interesting texture and pattern.

At night, when interior lights are illuminated, the building then becomes <a href="http://inhabitat.com/schmidt-hammer-lassen-completes-this-shimmering-sustainable-building-in-copenhagen/" target="_blank">almost transparent</a>. The golden façade of the day looks like a light <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tiny-kithaus-prefab-moves-beyond-housing-to-serve-as-a-sales-office-in-san-diego/" target="_blank">screen</a>, giving passersby a glimpse of the activity within.

The golden mesh encasing gives the Indra Corporate Building a glimmering lightness, while also saving the company on<a href="http://inhabitat.com/dyson-unveils-hot-bladeless-heater-that-doubles-as-a-cooling-fan-in-summer/" target="_blank"> climate control </a>costs.