"Up until this call, all the jurors have been foreigners. It must be taken into account that, being a single judge, we have tried to avoid any local ‘cliquey’ connections, whether friendly or conflict-ridden, between the jury and any of the selected candidates. A prestigious foreign architect would be 'above suspicion'.

◻️ However, this year we have decided that the superb Madrid-based architect Fernando Higueras will be the exception, as he is more than capable of this task, even though he considers himself Catalan and would like to change his surname to Figueras (almost all of his archive has been collected by the Arxiu Històric del Col·legi de Catalunya).

◻️ The clear 'orthodox' candidate in this call is the building of the MACBA by Richard Meyer, which to Clotet and me (the authors of the urban planning for the neighbourhood in the plan ‘From the Liceu to the Seminary’) seems entirely inappropriate for this location. I never interfere in the jury’s decision, but I am delighted when Fernando, standing in front of the pristine building, exclaims: – What a load of rubbish!"

Oscar Tusquets Blanca

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Jury report of the Premio Década 2005 (Completed Works in 1995)

"After studying the ten selected and clearly presented proposals, and conducting the corresponding visits to all of them, I have come to the conclusion that they were well chosen, as each one seems deserving of the Premio Década 1995-2005. All of them have been able to withstand the passage of time with dignity, from the most significant to the most modest, but all created with love and merit, both by the authors and the clients and organizations that made them possible.

▪️ Regardless of what the competition rules require, this is my personal opinion, and I believe it should influence all the authors, to whom I offer my congratulations without distinction for the success of their works, a success recognised, after a decade, both by their clients and the community.

▪️ I must acknowledge that being forced to select only one project, leaving the others aside, a decision I have made without any pressure from anyone, has caused me many doubts. I would like to make a particular mention of one project. Personally, after continuing to admire, today as always, Josep María Fargas, I was impressed by the timelessness and state of preservation of his great work, a work in which the enriching construction experience of the author is evident. Among other qualities, Fargas here includes the simplicity and perfection of the exterior finishes, the clean, clear, and logical structure of two-pillar porticos with their corresponding and recommendable cantilevers, and the great interior atrium behind the recessed square in its clean façade. Regardless of this work by an always admired author, I repeat that practically all the other works should be considered winners, given what I have seen and heard from the clients and people who live there, all of them satisfied with the fruits of their love for our profession.

▪️ But in compliance with the strict and original rules of this unique competition, I choose as the most admired and valued work, the one by Josep Llinás, an architect I have just discovered, for his modest but important and original housing project on Carrer del Carme. A project that, with all sincerity, I would have liked to have done just as well. I also want to highlight the people and institutions – client, municipal technicians... – who made this timeless construction possible, located beyond the strict compliance with urban planning regulations, as useful for its residents as for the grateful environment, the narrow Carrer d’en Roig, which is so improved by the surprising and original presence of generous spaces that we must learn to value, as an anonymous majority does. Thank you, Josep, I feel good about my decision, which I do not need to justify to you or to others, although I hope they agree with my choice.

▪️ Receive a strong and grateful hug from your colleague for all that you have done."

Fernando Higueras

Barcelona, 12 May 2005

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{Photographs of the award ceremony by Rafael Vargas}