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What's So Great about Spanish Architecture? |  |
February 21, 2007
by Alayna Buckner
Design Programs Columnist
Spain is now "an international stage for architectural innovation and experimentation," says Terence Riley of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. A new exhibit there highlights Spain's exciting, imaginative and provocative modern architecture. If you're interested in an architecture career of your own, read on to get a taste of it.
The Guggenheim
American architect Frank Gehry brought Spain to the forefront of international architecture with his Guggenheim Museum. Titanium and limestone blocks form massive interconnecting shapes and curved glass walls. With almost 20 galleries spread over 11,000 square meters of exhibition space, the building's architectural style adds to its dynamic presence, and the titanium reflects both old and new Bilbao.
The Bilbao Effect
Although Gehry's remarkable museum is an architectural marvel, it was part of a broader effort to modernize Bilbao from its dark, industrial days. Spain's hospitality to foreign architects is partly due to Spanish cities' hope of replicating the Bilbao effect, which brought millions of visitors to the city.
Barcelona's Colorful Architectural Style
In Barcelona, architects Enric Miralles and Benedetta Tagliabue have created an attractive, multi-colored tiled roof that is surprisingly wavy, to cover the Santa Caterina Market.
Seville's Mushroom Architecture
Jurgen Mayer, an architect from Berlin, has designed six giant wood-laminated umbrellas as a canopy over Seville's medieval square, Roman ruins, and museum. Currently under construction, the design has been described as both "ominous," with an architectural style reminiscent of The Empire Strikes Back, and "useful, elegant and perfectly playful...wildly biomorphic forms covering the park like a field of giant mushrooms." History will probably decide.
Madrid's Modern Architecture
The Richard Rogers Partnership and Estudio Lamela have created smart, beautiful, and dramatic new terminals at Madrid's Barajas Airport. With zoomy sci-fi details, exposed bolts, and bright bars supporting a steel roof and bamboo ceiling, the architecture style has been described as "unexpectedly jolly."
Something exciting is happening in Spain. Modern Spanish architecture celebrates bold and creative buildings and the world is noticing. If this article caught your eye, maybe it's time to consider a degree in drafting or architecture, so you can create beautiful buildings of your own.
Sources
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Slate, "Spanish Fly: How did modern architecture in Spain get so good?"
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Washington Post, "Gains in Spain: Once-Staid Architecture Soars Ahead of the Curve"
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About.com, "Guggenheim Bilbao"
About the Author
Alayna Buckner graduated from Stanford University with a degree in Public Policy and Philosophy. She just moved into a historical Victorian house in Washington, DC but wishes she could live in Seville's wildly-biomorphic-giant-mushroom-forms.
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