Calatrava, Santiago (1951)
October 24, 2009 | In: Architectural History
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An architect and engineer known for his anthropomorphic structural systems, Santiago Calatrava designs pavilions, bridges, and canopies that are both elegant and efficient. Calatrava was born in Spain in 1951, traveling to Paris and Switzerland as an exchange student in his youth. Intending to study at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, he instead enrolled in the Escuela Tecnica Superoir de Arquitectura in Valencia. Finding an interest in the mathematical rigor of certain great works of architecture, he pursued post-graduate studies in civil engineering at the Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. He began his career by winning the design and construction of the Stadelhofen Railway Station in Zurich in 1983. Other notable projects are the Bach de Roda Bridge, commissioned for the Olympic Games in Barcelona; the Alamillo Bridge and viaduct (1987–1992); Campo Volantin Footbridge in Bilbao (1990–1997); and the Alameda Bridge and underground station in Valencia (1991–1995). A few recent projects by Calatrava include the expansion of the Milwaukee Art Museum (2001); Athens Olympic Sports Complex (2004); and the Palacio de las Artes in Valencia (2004). He has received numerous honors and awards such as the Gold Medal of the Institute of Structural Engineers, London, and the Gold Medal of Merit in the Fine Arts, Ministry of Culture, Spain.
This sketch is from a series of design sketches for the Tenerife Concert Hall. The ‘Concert Hall is the gateway to a new park in the western part of Santa Cruz, designed to help revitalize a coastal strip that had been the site of industrial plants and oil refineries. The building is the result of a specified desire for a dynamic, monumental building that would not only be a place for music and culture but would create a focal point for the area.’
‘The all-concrete building is characterized by the dramatic sweep of its roof. Rising off the base like a crashing wave, the roof soars to a height of 58 meters over the main auditorium before curving downward and narrowing to a point. The building’s plinth forms a public plaza covering the site and allows for differences in grade between the different levels of the adjacent roads.…Geometrically, the roof is constructed from two intersecting cone segments. By contrast, the symmetrical inner shell of the concert hall, which is 50 meters high, is a rotational body, generated by rotating a
curve to describe an ellipse.’
The plan, section, and elevation sketches for this Concert Hall have been explored with graphite and watercolor in hues of blue and yellow. The plan sketch on the opposite page is not a typical floor plan that could be used for construction, but rather an instrument for design. Without the written explanation of the building, it would be difficult to understand the abstraction of the plan. It appears to show several levels and the exterior of the structure all at the same time.
The graphite under the watercolor has been sketched freehand. The form being slightly asymmetrical did not prevent the sketch from assisting Calatrava in visualizing the building’s organization. The slow, careful, and controlled strokes of the pencil imply a sketch in the development stage, rather than the first fleeting concepts. The specifications for the project list white concrete and broken ceramic tiles among the building materials.
For the interior, the principal materials include platinum blue granite and structural wood. Although the sketch appears to illustrate the refinement of form, Calatrava was also employing color to help him imagine the space and, possibly, represent the building materials.
