Parc del Fòrum, Barcelona

Accordion. The Forum, Barcelona, 2013

This area along the Barcelona coast would be a great site for a photography workshop. There are all kinds of shapes, forms, textures, unusual architecture, tall buildings, weird benches, giant concrete anti-erosion cubes–and, of course, the sea. It would be interesting to see what a small class of, say, five or six would come up with shooting at the sunrise golden hour. There are plenty of subjects from strange abstracts to cityscapes to seascape panoramas.

[NOTE: As of July, 2014, I have seen signs that say that the Forum Park area is only open from 7:00a.m. to 10:p.m. daily. The gates are shut outside of those hours. This could affect your plans to be there at sunrise during the summer months. Also, during the summer, many special events and concerts can close some of the Forum area to access. Check at a tourist office before you go.]

The main Forum building and the surroundings were put together as part of the 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures (which was not without controversy–see the link) and they are currently used for all kinds of cultural, musical, and theatrical events.

Perhaps the most iconic structure in this area is the huge solar panel (or “pergola“) right on the edge of the water, between the sailing school and where the luxury yachts are parked. Built by ISOFOTON, a global (60 countries) solar energy company, this monster structure contains 2,686 photovoltaic modules which give it a capacity of 443 kilowatts. That’s enough for just 40 families, so the effort is largly a symbolic gesture–albeit an important one–in terms of electricity production. For us photographers, though, it is its unusual overall form which attracts.