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Fotografías: Jesús Granada (izquierda), Luis Díaz Díaz (derecha)

It is neither frequent nor rare for the FAD Award to be shared by two works on an equal footing. But whereas past ex aequo winners were very different in nature, this time the two awardees address similar concerns with a proactive audacity pointing in the same direction. The Biblioteca Gabriel García Márquez in Barcelona – which was named the year’s best new public library by an international federation of librarians’ associations and institutions – and the Reggio private school in Madrid are both by practices based in the Spanish capital: the duo formed by Guillermo Sevillano and Elena Orte on the one hand, and Andrés Jaque’s Office for Political Innovation on the other. More importantly, with their generous spaces the two works express a reverential attention to the needs and experiences of their respective users, as well as an ecological conscience that among other things has led to the reinterpretation of materials and solutions on a sustainability note.