LA VERÓNICA is a restaurant in the heart of Barcelona’s old town. It is
located between two squares: Plaça de la Veronica and Plaça de George Orwell. The location determined the project’s first aim: to link both squares and their respective social groups with a connecting public space - the restaurant.

A line of lights (set at a uniform height and constant intervals) trace a luminous path between the Plaça de la Veronica to Plaça de George Orwell. This line of lights connects both entrances and unifies- as the one constant element - the various restaurant spaces. The naked light bulbs highlight the contrast between the warm chromatic choice for the interior and its immediate urban context. The differing colours of each wall mark the complexity of the different spaces and create a theatrical effect of diversity and depth.

Extension work to La VERÓNICA in November 1999 provided an opportunity for
enlarging the restaurant and to design a luminous bench as a new element to
the interior. Running the length of the dining room, this new installation
provides a place to sit, ambient lighting and a reduction of background
noise. The light of the tall, luminous back panel traces the siluette of each
diner. Its luminous intensity is reduced with increasing occupation.

Project: “La Veronica” Restaurant
Location: 31 Avinyó Street, Barcelona
Date: 1996, extension 1999

Author: Julia Schulz-Dornburg

Client: Francesc Llorca

Photography: Olga Carretero