What is this strange building that appears just a few kilometers from Barcelona? Some call it an eyesore, others a curiosity, but this massive brick structure that towers over the rooftops leaves no one indifferent. Designed by one of the greatest Catalan architects of the 20th century, it's known by the equally curious name of Walden 7.

In the western suburbs of Barcelona stands a giant of red bricks with labyrinthine and futuristic airs. Located in Sant Just Desvern, far from going unnoticed, the 16-story Walden 7 represents a bold attempt to reinvent how we live in cities. Conceived by Ricardo Bofill and his Taller de Arquitectura in the late 1960s, it emerged during a period of great economic and demographic growth in Catalonia.

Industry was booming at the time, attracting populations from all over Spain who hoped to find a better life. Demographics exploded, and public authorities were often caught off guard in their housing supply. Large housing complexes were born, built hastily and anarchically, where aesthetics and the well-being of their occupants were sacrificed in the name of urgency.

It was in this context that young Ricardo Bofill, trained at the Barcelona School of Architecture and especially in Geneva, created the Taller de Arquitectura with the ambition of offering an alternative to the urban models of his time. The architect surrounded himself with mathematicians, philosophers, engineers, artists, poets, sociologists, and psychologists to form a multidisciplinary team capable of offering more humane architecture.

The idea of Walden 7 was born in the 1960s, following projects where Bofill experimented with new urban forms: the Gaudí neighborhood in Reus, the Kafka Castle in Sant Pere de Ribes, and the Red Wall in Calpe. These creations were labyrinthine with alternating patios, walkways, and passages inspired by medinas, kasbahs, and traditional Mediterranean basin habitats.

In Sant Just Desvern, Bofill used the site of an old cement factory, keeping the main building to house his Taller de Arquitectura and personal residence. The rest was destroyed to make way for a massive collective housing complex, cities in space. From the general project, only one building would be realized: Walden 7.

The name is a nod to the utopian work of American psychologist B.F. Skinner, "Walden Two," in which two students intern in an experimental libertarian and egalitarian community. Bofill's Walden 7 would be like an architectural translation of this ideal communal society.

Like his previous projects, instead of following the precepts of standardized architecture that Francoist Spain knew, or the ideas of Le Corbusier which he rejected wholesale due to their lack of humanity, Ricardo Bofill promoted architecture inspired by garden cities where man and his history were at the heart of spatial organization. The complex task of the building's design was entrusted to Ana Bofill, Ricardo's sister and a "waldenita" from the beginning (the name given to the original inhabitants of Walden 7, some of whom remain today).

Walden 7 was conceived as a city in space: the square 30-square-meter module served as the base for organizing and distributing housing. At the heart of the different blocks, vertical interior courtyards are found, pierced with walkways, balconies, and stairs, creating moving perspectives and semi-public spaces that encourage meeting and exchange. Shops and services were planned inside the structure itself, to create a truly self-managed city.

Red bricks on the exterior, like the kasbah, turquoise walls inside, far from being a monolithic block, Walden 7 is pierced with openings that ventilate and bring light to the building. On the 16th floor, the communal roof terrace is designed as a hanging garden where events can be organized, people can meet for barbecues, or simply enjoy the swimming pools. With a view.

However, Walden 7 almost didn't exist because before the work was finished, the construction company declared bankruptcy, leaving the site suspended. A myriad of small companies mobilized and finished the building in 1975, but this was only the beginning of a series of problems that started in 1977: poor finishes, falling ceramics, cracks, infiltrations. The building was covered with safety nets and declared in ruins, against the will of its inhabitants.

It was the municipality of Sant Just Desvern that came to the rescue of the Bofill work by investing the equivalent of 3.6 million euros for the rehabilitation and consolidation of the building. Walden 7 was declared a Cultural Asset of Local Interest in 1987, and at the end of work in 1995, the building and its inhabitants turned the page on a tumultuous history.

Both emblematic and controversial, original and contested, Walden 7 and its 50 candles today forms an integral part of the landscape of Barcelona's suburbs, testimony to a utopia that the Bofills committed themselves to transforming into reality. For more information, Florence from Barcelona Autrement organizes visits to Walden 7, accompanied by waldenitas (residents of the building). The next visit is scheduled for Sunday, October 19 at 11 a.m., with information and registration available at Barceloneautrement.com/reserver.