“A rose for Sant Jordi”. This is the title of the winning project in the ninth edition of the competition promoted by the Provincial Council of Castellón, which recognises university proposals that advocate new uses for public spaces. The winning project was developed by Australian student Olivia de Burgh, who drew inspiration from the legend of Sant Jordi to carry out a detailed urban regeneration proposal for the municipality of Sant Jordi, in the province of Castellón.

Sant Jordi is a municipality of approximately 1,400 inhabitants in the Baix Maestrat region, characterised by its rural tranquillity and an olive grove landscape typical of the province. Plaça d’Espanya is one of the town’s three civic spaces. Featuring a central dragon sculpture, six concrete benches, eight mulberry trees and a small children’s play area, the task set for students of the Barcelona Ceramic Chair was to transform and improve the square by exploring formal construction solutions and innovative design approaches.

The winning proposal by the UIC Barcelona student reinterprets the space through the legend of Sant Jordi: “The petals of the rose unfold across the square, gently resolving the pronounced topography. Following the shape of the rose, the square becomes permeable, with dissolved walls that allow people to move freely,” the project explains. Just as Sant Jordi slew the dragon, Olivia de Burgh proposes relocating the central dragon sculpture and creating a playscape of mounds that evoke the back of the mythical creature, now imagined as sleeping beneath the ground.

“I wanted to preserve the symbolism of Sant Jordi through a concept that feels close to the community. Local residents feel a strong connection to Sant Jordi; I could not simply remove the dragon, which is why I decided to retain it in a metaphorical way that invites discovery,” Olivia explains.

In addition to its historical and cultural connection with the municipality, the project introduces innovative and sustainable improvements: permeable ceramic paving to prevent flooding during heavy storms typical of the area; a new arrangement of trees to enhance shade according to solar orientation; and ceramic elements designed specifically for the dragon’s surface, encouraging climbing on the small mounds and creating a functional play space.

Now in her fifth and final year at UIC Barcelona School of Architecture, the student from Sydney highlights the value of participating in competitions of this kind: “Designing a project for Barcelona, with its large and international community, is not the same as designing for a small town in Spain. What I enjoy most is developing projects that are rooted in their territory and leave a positive mark on people’s lives,” she explains.

Ceramics Chair

The UIC Barcelona Ceramics Chair, which has been running for 22 consecutive years thanks to the sponsorship of the Spanish Association of Tile and Pavement Manufacturers (ASCER), aims to foster links between architecture students and industry. In this way, future architects can direct their proposals towards the use of ceramics, innovating in new formats or developing applications and features in existing formats.

The director of the chair, Dr Vicenç Sarrablo, hails Olivia’s achievement: “We are very proud to continue inspiring our students and to be recognised as a School with a strong command of ceramic materials,” he concludes.