A roof becomes the face of Barcelona’s Santa Caterina Market

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A roof becomes the face of Barcelona’s Santa Caterina Market

Published: 07 Apr. 2025, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Kim Bong-ryeol

The author is an architect and professor emeritus at Korea National University of Arts.

Tucked inside the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona — a maze of medieval cathedrals and tightly packed apartment blocks — the Santa Caterina Market has stood for generations as a neighborhood source of produce and household staples. But long before it was a market, the site housed the Santa Caterina Convent, built in the 13th century and destroyed by fire in 1845. The city’s first covered market was later constructed on the site with a utilitarian metal roof.

Over the decades, as supermarkets and shopping centers spread across the city, the market fell into disrepair and lost much of its vitality. In the early 2000s, the city held a design competition to revive the space. The winning proposal came from the late architect Enric Miralles, whose bold and often unconventional designs helped define late-20th-century Barcelona. He died during the eight-year renovation, which was completed in 2005 and is now widely seen as one of his signature works.

Santa Caterina market in Barcelona. [JOONGANG ILBO]

During construction, workers uncovered layers of Roman and medieval ruins beneath the market. Instead of relocating the artifacts, the city created a small archaeological museum on the site. The existing building was restored and updated, and new amenities were added, including a modern food court and a greatly expanded underground parking facility. The number of vendor stalls was reduced and walkways widened, opening up space for people to meet, rest and gather.

But it is the roof that now defines Santa Caterina. A sweeping wave of multicolored ceramic tiles, set in hexagonal patterns and supported by arched steel beams, covers more than 5,600 square meters (60,279 square feet). Viewed from surrounding buildings, the rooftop resembles a giant mosaic of fruits, vegetables and preserved foods — turning what was once a simple shelter into a landmark. The cityscape now frames the roof as a kind of urban frontispiece, a “roofscape” that gives the market a face.

What was once a dim, aging market has become a vibrant public space and a tourist destination, seamlessly combining commerce, architecture and history. Santa Caterina is not just a renovation but a reminder that even the most utilitarian spaces can become civic symbols. For cities elsewhere — including those in Korea, where many traditional markets face similar pressures — the project offers a compelling model for urban regeneration grounded in place, memory and design.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.