Context

The research leading to the new funicular was based on a close collaboration with the engineering and manufacturing firms Leitner Ropeways, SigmaCabins and Teleféricos y Nieve. Leitner Ropeways and SigmaCabins have developed a complex manufacturing process for ropeway vehicles and engines, involving specific machinery and technology, qualified personnel and comprehensive mechanical studies of parts and final results, which helped to inform Miàs’s design. This process has previously been used in the production of 32 sealed and air-conditioned ovoidal capsules for the London Eye, which are attached to the external circumference of the rotating wheel so that the floors remain horizontal.

French architect and designer Jean Prouvé was a recurring reference. Prouvé’s work was diverse in nature and scale, ranging from furniture to modular components for structures and façades. He developed new ways of building related to prefabrication and assembly, transferring manufacturing technology from engineering to architecture whilst foregrounding aesthetic qualities. Reminiscent processes were applied to the funicular’s design so that the necessary components and technical aspects were integrated using the required manufacturing processes and materials. Prouvé was famously quoted as saying: ‘Never design anything that cannot be made’ (Prouve n.d.).

The research for the new funicular focused on merging architecture with engineering and went beyond the realm of common architectural practice, from the adoption of new construction techniques for large-scale glass windows to the reorganisation of machinery so that it is concealed in a clean design. This innovative spirit of invention references Buckminster Fuller, who said in his book Critical Path ‘You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete’ (Buckminster Fuller 1981). His groundbreaking Dymaxion Car (1933) is a futurisitic prototype for an automobile, featuring a lightweight hinged chassis on three wheels and an aerodynamic bodywork designed for increased fuel efficiency and speed. Technologically and functionally, the new funicular shares many of the aims considered by Buckminster Fuller in the design of his Dymaxion Car.

The American industrial designer Syd Mead, who designed architectural renderings for films such as Tron and Blade Runner and cars for Ford and Phillips, is also an influence. Mead’s work put forward the idea that creative thought processes help to reframe the meaning of the liveable object; buildings can be mechanised while transportation can be domesticated. Designed with its future inhabitants and surroundings in mind, Cuca de Llum combines a futuristic vision with the ludic mood of the Tibidabo amusement park.

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13 SigmaCabins was responsible for designing and manufacturing the cabins for the pioneering London Eye.

14 Buckminster Fuller and his Dymaxion Car. 15 SigmaCabins has also been involved in the design and manufacture of the British Airways i360 Viewing Tower in Brighton.