Barcelona is sprinkled with parks whose principal element is cement, and Jean Nouvel's Parc del Centre del Poblenou, with its stylised metal seats and items of statuary, is no exception. However, the park's Gaudí-inspired cement walls are increasingly covered by sprawling bougainvillea and, inside, some 1000 trees of mostly Mediterranean species are complemented by thousands of smaller bushes and plants. Nouvel’s idea is that the trees, sustained by local ground water, will eventually form a natural canopy over the park.
