La Casa Invisible Needs Help

We discovered Casa Invisible during a report in Malaga in October. It is a very old Andalucian style building located in the old center. In the « patio » we can find a peaceful place with a fountain and a café. This place is usually used for some shows or concerts. Inside, several rooms are dedicated to workshops and meetings.

Since its opening in 2007, La Casa Invisible became a really important part of the cultural and social life of the city. From kids to elderly, people from different backgrounds and ages come here to participate to the events. In a region that suffers from crisis and poverty, the house offers a space to interact and get support.

On the other hand, the entire house has an historical background and the volunteers from the association are working little by little to renovate it. In Malaga -with the exception of the façade- many old buildings from the center are destroyed in order to build new ones.

However, at the end of December 2014, the conservative City Council of Malaga decided to close la Casa Invisible. They stated that the building was not following the proper conditions to organize events and workshops inside the house. People from the Invisible explained they were working on it but it takes time because of a lack of money and funds

The closure made a big scandal because policemen surrounded the house. There were many demonstrations to protest against it. Many people think that the City Council wants to end the project by stopping the workshops, which are the « soul » of the place.

As a result, the local authorities and the Invisible found an agreement. People from la Invisible is committing to make necessary renovations, especially for the electric and alarm system. If they manage to do so, they can reopen the place.

La Invisible started a crowdfounding campaign to buy all the materials. Around 17,000 euros have been collected so far (over 20,000 euros).

According to Fernando from Malagalab, a collective of urbanists and architects : « Even if we didn’t change radically, the depth of the crisis obliged us to rethink urban planning. People have the ability to create their own spaces. If we don’t use those spaces, the authorities will change them in order to satisfy their own aims, not the citizens’ needs. We started to be aware of this. »