Josep Muxart was born in Barcelona in 1962. He graduated as an architect from the Barcelona School of Architecture, and began his career in 1992. In 1997 he was appointed by the Barcelona City Council as Head of the Renovations Office, and from 1999 to 2006 was Building Project Manager at the ProEixample public company. Since 2008 he has been attached as an architect to the Projects Department of the Municipalities Association's Directorate of Public Spaces for the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona.
He has designed street furniture for several companies including Escofet, DAE, Santa & Cole and Fabregas.
His work installed in Barcelona has included Garrofers del Caramel Park (2008), Punt Verd de la Sagrada Familia Punt (2003), Paulina Odena, the interior of a street block recovered as public gardens (2003), Casal d’Avis de l’Esquerra de l’Eixample (2004), entrance to street block interior on Calle Padilla (2006), and Day Care Centre in Sant Antoni (2005).
Escofet Series 1886 SA Bilbao consists of a planter and a reinforced cast stone bench, designed on the basis of an intervention strategy using the desire to give a soft-looking organic aspect to this rigid material. This is achieved with a continuous composition of curves and warped planes. This product has a provocative appearance with restrained movement, taken almost to the limit of the normal dimensions in order to reduce its visual presence and make it more environment-friendly. The series is in concrete with a natural stone colour, an acid-etched and water-repellent finish. The planter is a triangular pyramid with slightly arched sides. The formal result is achieved by a circular torque-like displacement of the upper plane from the lower face, which generates the warp. Its image changes with viewer's position, and its repetition creates a sequence of seemingly different elements. The structurally linear bench adopts similar forms. It rests on its extremities in order to clear the space below and simplify maintenance and cleaning. It has a low backrest and is supplied with a longitudinal gap in the seat surface to facilitate water drainage and the removal of unwanted debris.
