RECREA. Revitalising communal spaces to foster better relationships and learning

A collective transformation of the school environment to improve community relations and foster new ways of learning. RECREA proposes rethinking and transforming the communal spaces at IES Guillem d’Alcalà through a co-design process that places students and the educational community at the centre. It links the physical transformation of the environment with addressing students’ needs, improving relationships, fostering participation and promoting collective learning.

As part of PLANEA’s artist-in-residence programme, RECREA is a collective creative process in which students actively participate in identifying needs, exploring possibilities and designing an intervention adapted to the context of the centre. Through activities involving observation, dialogue and co-creation, the aim is to connect the everyday experiences of those who inhabit the space with new ways of imagining and using it.
The process begins with an analysis of the environment: identifying the places that are used, those that are avoided, and the physical, sensory and emotional characteristics that influence these decisions. Based on this diagnosis, a catalogue of resources is created that brings together both materials available for reuse and the skills and knowledge present within the educational community.
Based on this, a process of exploration begins, using references and creative tools such as collage, which enables pupils to expand their imagination and develop proposals. Through co-design activities, ideas are discussed and refined, taking into account aspects such as the function, materials, form and stability of the intervention.

The proposal is structured around eight working sessions that guide the students from the initial analysis through to the realisation of the project. Once the proposal has been finalised, the process is opened up to the wider educational community to share ideas, bring in new collaborators and encourage involvement in the transformation and care of the space.

The methodology incorporates criteria such as media ecology, the inclusion of diversity, the reuse of materials, the adaptation of the process to different forms of participation, and the documentation of learning. In this way, design also becomes an educational tool for fostering dialogue, active listening, collective thinking and shared decision-making.
RECREA aims to contribute to a culture of coexistence in which students are not merely users of the spaces, but active participants in their transformation. It is an interdisciplinary learning experience that connects artistic practice with the school’s daily life and views communal spaces as places for meeting, participation and collective creation.