Venice Architecture Biennale 2016: Madrid firm Office for Strategic Spaces has used low-budget materials to transform an old industrial building in the Spanish capital into a multi-level workspace for creative startup businesses (+ slideshow).

Completed in 2014, the Factoría Cultural is an incubator for creative industries housed in a hall within the Matadero Madrid contemporary arts centre.
It is one of 55 projects featured in the Golden Lion-winning Spanish Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, which aims to highlight the new "radical" approach that has emerged in Spain in the wake of the 2008 financial crash.

The building is part of a former slaughterhouse and market complex from the early 20th century, but has been used as a cultural venue since 2005. Madrid-based Office for Strategic Spaces, which is led by architect Angel Borrego Cubero, was tasked with transforming the empty industrial space into an environment suited to modern working practices.

The site is owned by Madrid City Council, so any changes to the original architecture must be capable of being reversed.
Because of this, the architects used basic materials to create structures that are sustainable, affordable and reversible, meaning they can be easily dismantled with no waste when no longer needed.

Recognising that it was impossible to fit the required 120 desks into the available floor area, the team proposed a series of three interventions aimed at providing more space and fac...