What is the origin of the Marina rental chair house?

The number 122 of Marina Street does not go unnoticed.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
24 June 2022 Friday 15:49
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What is the origin of the Marina rental chair house?

The number 122 of Marina Street does not go unnoticed. In the first place because of the large letters that adorn the facade and that announce the activity that took place in the premises since 1929 by the Casa Gay company. Thus, it can read "GAY CHAIRS TABLES SERVICE FOR BANQUETS RENTAL SECTION". But there is a second reading. The current occupants of the building highlighted some letters with white paint, and highlights the claiming phrase "ES VICIO ES ALQUILER".

The modification is the work of the groups of artists that currently occupy the building, whose history dates back to the year in which the International Exhibition was held in Barcelona. It was 1929 and Casa Gay was a company founded in 1860 that had the municipal concession for rental chairs on the Rambla, which it maintained until August 2000, when the city council decided to end it. Rental chairs are known to have existed since the 18th century. Initially they were made of wood and straw, and Casa Gay revolutionized the service when it took over the concession, replacing them with iron chairs.

Years later, the company had established itself in the activity of renting chairs and tables for events. In 1916 they occupied a building with five squares at the confluence of Calle

Ali Bei with Paseo de Sant Joan. They expanded their activity with the Marina 122 1929 building, in a new moment of business expansion coinciding with the splendor of the exhibition. In 1935, the company settled in Roger de Flor, 12-14, where it still remains.

Ownership of the Marina building continued to belong to the Gay family until it was finally transferred to the Mercedarios congregation, which carried out some religious activity, but without continuity. Now it is occupied by the aforementioned groups of artists.

One of the actions carried out by these occupants, in addition to playing with the advertising letters, is an installation of tiles on the façade that recalls the history of the building. Among them stands out the reproduction of an aerial image of the bombing of Barcelona in 1938 and in which the annex building was affected, which had to be demolished.