Radio Set

About This Project

Radio Set

Puerto Madero / 2004

Radio Set is the first radio bar in the world. It is located in one of the old docks of Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
These old docks have been reconditioned for different uses and form a new neighborhood in the city.

Radio Set is where gastronomy and radio meet. Rock & Pop, Aspen, and Metro are the local radio stations that use the premises.
The project was conceived together with our client, and its aim was to attend to the needs of the two activities, gastronomy and radio.
We wanted people to see how a live radio show is made, and how the audience can participate in this interrelationship.

This concept, new in its kind, necessarily implies a new typology of uses. A well-defined volume of glass and avant-garde architecture give modern radio a new image, in which the audience is involved, thus leaving behind the traditional concept of radio, which could only be listened to.
The greatest challenge was to bring together under one roof two dissimilar activities. We had to build a radio studio inside an eating place.

The original building presented us with formal complexities: the front faced the riverbank, which was quite incompatible with the purposes of the project.

Our solution was to keep the front clear (the front doors, which can be lifted, will serve as accesses) and place the radio on one of the building’s blind sides.

Upon entering, visitors will find a space where merchandising items are displayed; then comes the Internet area, the radio itself, and, finally, the gastronomic area, with an open view of the river.

The colors used most are red (for passion) and gray (for technology). We believe the radio links these two concepts: the passion with which radio is made and the technology which aids our senses.

Radio Set was conceived for daytime and nighttime use. Its lighting completely changes the place’s appearance and alters the visitor’s perception of the premises.

Radio Set is a new, different concept: now you can watch radio, not only listen to it.

Consultants:

Radio studio acoustic engineer: Eduardo Bergallo.

Room acoustic engineer: Martín Mosfovich.

Radio: Oscar Francolino.

Thermomechanical installation: Climaster, Jorge Stancanelli.

This project was published in the following magazines:

Wallpaper (England)

Diseño Interior (Spain)

Summa + (Argentina)