The previous square had major accessibility deficiencies and an excessive division of the spaces due to steep slopes, not to mention that the plaza turned its back on the Cathedral-University of Huelva, which is listed as an Asset of Cultural Interest.

The Plaza de la Merced is a remarkable urban and cultural enclave in the city, located, as it is, right where the topography of Huelva’s system of hills comes in contact with the flat area of the city and its old marshes, which would clog in the past. Hence the new areas are presented as mounds, in memory of the city’s peculiar topography, while an entire system of lines and draining surfaces for rainwater colection recalls the river and sea character of Huelva.

The scheme seeks to physically and visually link a series of small-scale spaces to a large central void toward which they all converge, maintaining the Cathedral-University as a backdrop. This huge space lends itself to being reconfigured to accommodate different kinds of events. Becoming a metaphor for the ‘theater of everyday life in the city,’ the square has a central circle which would be the stalls, the five perimetral rooms the upper voces, the empty space the stage, and the Cathedral-University the backdrop of the scene.