Recently, Revista Pedra Seca published an extensive interview with our architect Oriol Roselló, focusing on one of our most significant projects: the Àgora de Mas Marrochthe celebration space of the Roca brothers. It is a conversation that goes far beyond geometry and materials: a profound reflection on how tradition, craftsmanship, sustainability, and innovation can intertwine to create works that speak as much of the past as they do of the future.
Rediscovering dry stone: the beginning of a bold project
In the interview, Roselló recounts the major challenge of creating the first unique, large-scale public building that the Roca brothers envisioned—using dry stone and completing it in only three months. The fact that this technique is practically forgotten and there is no legislation around it added complexity to the project. Nevertheless, once the project was completed, it has proved that dry stone is a perfectly safe construction technique: a year later, and even after an earthquake, topographic checks confirmed that there had been no significant displacement.
The idea was not only to revive a traditional construction method but to use it as a structural element, capable of standing without artificial binding materials and to do so with the level of safety required for a public-use building. This decision involved risks but also enormous possibilities: breathing new life into ancestral techniques, reintegrating them into contemporary architecture and demonstrating that sustainability is not merely an added value but a foundation.
Sustainable construction: local materials, artisan craftsmanship and respect for the landscape
Roselló also points out the selection of local materials and the work of master artisans as the pillars of the project. Reviving dry stone as a constructive method not only means giving new life to ancestral techniques and reintegrating them into contemporary architecture, but also goes further, rethinking construction in all its dimensions. This is why it is so important to use locally sourced materials, which confer maximum uniqueness to the building with minimal environmental impact and to work together with the different artisans. It is in this second aspect that Roselló wanted to emphasize the close collaboration among all the master artisans, both during the construction phase and in the decision-making process.
Looking to the future: architecture with roots and conscience
The Mas Marroch project, thanks to its scale and importance, represents a turning point in reviving dry stone as a construction technique—an architecture that seeks to preserve traditional knowledge—crafts, techniques, ways of working stone—while adapting it to current demands such as sustainability, durability and integration with the environment.
Here you can read the interview.