Structural problems have caused collector and patron Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo to cancel her plans to turn a former slaughterhouse in Madrid into a contemporary art complex. Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, who already operates the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo in Turin, commissioned architects David Adjaye and Arturo Franco in 2017 to undertake the refurbishment of the early-twentieth century buildings, but a recent feasibility study revealed intrinsic architectural problems to Madrid’s Matadero complex, located in the city’s Arguanzuela district, that could not be overcome.
The 165,415 sqm property, which belongs to the city council, was to be transformed by David Adjaye and Arturo Franco into multi-purpose space to host exhibitions, educational and research programmes, as well as events. The collector says she will look for another space in the city and remains committed to working in Spain – she recently commissioned a series of works by Ian Cheng for exhibit at Fundación Fernando de Castro in Madrid and will fund a curatorial residency programme in the city.
When plans for the new centre were originally revealed Sandretto Re Rebaudengo said she chose Madrid to ‘broaden the scope of the institution’ to a major European capital that represents ‘a bridge to Latin-American culture, a growing scene, which I have been watching closely for a long time’.
2 March 2020
