Faris M. Turkistani Dr. Brett Tippey The Modern in Spain 5/9/2017 Chueca Goitia and Rafael de la Hoz: Moorish and Modern After the year 1898 Spain was going through difficulties identifying its national values. Losing the remnants of the occupied colonies, and the internal divide between their states played a major part of this escalating this issue. A combination of the establishment of a new social class, and the effort for each area to find their own characteristic resulted in architecture that is based in a historicist perspective. Historicism lead to building that lacked creative, and rational approach to design, which hindered the progression of the Spanish architecture. While the design methodology produces inadequate design, the sentiment it stems from is understandable. The sentiment of determining the national, or traditional values that represent Spain as a collective, and preserving these in times of global change. Spain’s need to maintaining its own authentic style is essential for maintaining its identity. In 1953 after Francisco Franco and Dwight Eisenhower signed the Pact of Madrid Spain saw a softening of Franco’s dictatorship, dictablanda, leading Spanish architects to explore and implement modern ideas in their projects. In the same time architect Fernando Chueca Goitia published his theoretical text titled Manifesto de la Alhambra, where he argued that in order for Spain to progress in a rational, and traditional manner they need to adapt architecture from the history of Spain in an abstract method. He specified Moorish architecture as the source of inspiration. With similar goals Rafael de LaHoz conducted a study in search of architectural canon in the city of Cordoba started in 1944, then published in 1973 under the name La Proporcion Cordobesa. The proportion he identified as the appropriate ratio used for the composition of architecture in Cordoba, achieving excellence in aesthetic quality and functional application. The aforementioned texts share similar sentiments of identity, and rationality of design, and both texts promote modern ideas through the analysis of existing Moorish architecture, or architectural concept established by the Moors of Al-Andalus. Through the analysis, and comparison of the theoretical writings of Fernando Chueca Goitia, and Rafael de La-Hoz about Moorish architecture, this paper argues that Moorish architecture has elements that demonstrate modern sensibilities while representing an integral part of Spain’s history, and identity.
Moorish style is adequately appropriate for adaptation by modern Spanish Architects. As Spain had an extensive amount of interactions with the Moors. The Islamic motif and sensibilities has its historical and cultural connection with Spain ever since the establishment of Al-Andalus. These connections justifies the remarking the influence of Moorish architecture as a part of the Spanish canon. The manifesto sought to promote the idea of venturing outside the comfort of Classical/Renaissance influence in order to build a path for Spain that leads to a proper national identity in architecture. An identity that is based upon rational thinking and approach instead of the shallow mimicry of antiquated traditions. Alhambra is the key for that achievement, as it encompasses the subtleties that correlates with modern thinking, combined with the cultural and historical values that relates to the Spanish background.
Chueca states in the manifesto “Frank Lloyd Wright devotedly studied Oriental forms, and he introduced a certain sense of Japanism into the architecture of North America. It was a last-minute injection of foreign source material that occurred thanks to the personal preference of one architect, whereas ‘Arabism’ in Spain has always been essential element of our culture1” this remark showcases Chueca’s consideration of the relationship between the Moorish and the Spanish cultures. De La-Hoz in the other hand shows a rejection of the ‘Arab’ involvement in Spain “Thanks to the knowledge of the Cordovan proportion we can determine in some of the cases the local origin of its architects, confirming Henri Terrase” It is necessary to reject the legend of Arab Spain, We have seen several cases that the Muslims of Spain and the best among them have been generally Spanish…2” de La-Hoz however uses that to confirm the Spanish nature of these building, albeit specifically about Cordoba. After the Western translation of the treaties of Vitruvius “The Element”, the west started adapting the classical aesthetic starting with the Italian Renaissance, and with time progression the classical forms, and with the span of different movements the style was being molded and transformed according to each era’s preference. The different reimagining of the classical forms resulted in the cold and shallow imitations. Causing a stylistic fatigue, and lack of creativity. Mimicry became easier than creative transformation of old ideas. Thus at that time it was a perfect opportunity to combat historicism by the adaptation of Moorish architecture. Alhambra’s typology could not be appropriated into a contemporary program. The Great Mosque of Cordoba has a similar aspect where its open prayer hall with the consistent grid of columns does not lend itself to a direct implementation into other programs. The inability to directly mimic the buildings forces architects to be more creative with their adaptation, and consider the abstract ideas these forms represents, and appreciate the subtleties of the architectural brilliance. Chueca expresses his fascination with Alhambra’s subtleties by saying that “it is no contradiction to be lured by the Alhambra to meditate on modern architecture, because for us this building has no age; instead, it only has architecture.3” De La-Hoz expresses his admiration of spatial qualities the Mosque of Cordoba demonstrates, projecting a sense of infinite depth , warping time and space, “A study on the architecture of Cordoba has to start from its mosque, the first of its factories in space and time… achieving an indefinite, articulate, suggestive space of imaginative emotions hardly imaginable4”. De la Hoz emphasizes the quality in the Cordovan proportion to be bound by no age nor style. Throughout his writing he uses multiple examples from different times after Moorish architecture established the proportions in Cordoba. He started with the Great Mosque of Cordoba then he moved demonstrate the use of the Proportions in buildings like the façade of the Palace of the Marques de la Fuenstanta del Valle, built in the 16th century. Other examples are the façade of the Capuchino quoting Chueca Goitia’s description of its security in proportions .As the Cordovan rectangle improve upon the adaptation of Renaissance forms it creates a unique precept. De la Hoz state” through its own canon, that masculine solidity, accent of power, rude strength and genius that are genuine characteristics of it architecture.5”
On the surface Moorish architecture seems to possess the typical values like many buildings during the middle ages. Complexities in design, and decaying properties. However 1
Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 212 2 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 36 3 Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 208 4 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 23 5 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 36
critical perception of its qualities in an abstract will reflect elements that share kinship with the modern approach of design. Chueca’s dissection of Alhambra shed the light on some of the sensibilities shared between the two. “The similarities between this fourteen century building (Alhambra) and today’s most advanced architecture are, in many wats, surprising. Among numerous other similarities, both are based on human module, both use organic asymmetry to compose plans, both use purity and honesty of forms, both incorporate gardens and landscape into the building, and both use materials efficiently and correctly.6” His mention of the basis on human modules strikes a similar cord to de La-Hoz’s analysis of the Cordovan proportions, and its basis on the man of Cordoba, “While the ideal man of Davinci should be of divine proportions, The Cordovan man is according to his own real ethnical characteristics, and it is in those where he has educated his aesthetic appreciation, conforming his sensibility7”. The implementation of the Cordovan Proportions rather than the Golden Proportions is justified, since the Cordovan ratio is based upon the factual ethnic proportions of the man of Cordoba. A rectangle built in accordance to the Cordovan man’s aesthetic values and sensibilities rationally is more appropriate to be used in Cordoba. To the Cordovan man beauty is stemmed more from the rationale of the Cordovan Rectangle, instead of the Golden Rectangle. One of the modern elements in the Moorish buildings is the limited use of molding. The lack of molding to be an advantage. The use of molding in the West was overdone to the point of becoming stale and mutated to become primarily for ornamentation, demoting the architecture to be sculptured mold hung on a flat wall. The molding used in Moorish architecture is limited to practical need, conforming the material to be honest to its need. Chueca describe Alhambra’s molding to be “The impost molding that tops most of the Alhambra’s column capitals due to the practical need to widen the surface of the capital in order to receive the spring of the arch; likewise, the stalactites are arrayed in a way that stands out from the ceiling in order to align them with other elements8”, while de La-Hoz’s admiration of the Great Mosque suggest similar ideas about its columns, ”Its structure is born biologically by standing on the material that gives the earth: columns of the immense Roman ruin. For the first time, the prefabricated, modular, growing* architecture - which takes more than a century to reach the greatest religious extension of Europe in all its history9” This harmony between the form and decoration lead to an honesty in material use. Chueca Goitia describes the materiality of Alhambra as “…with respect to their (materials) distinct aesthetic qualities and means of construction.10” This mirrors the Viollete le Duc’s ideas of sincerity in form and means of construction, albeit possibly coincidental. Alhambra is a place where materials play their natural role. This sincerity results in a monument that suggest fragility, yet not held by shear mass, rather by the rational use of its materials. Another expression of material honesty is its availability in the region. Using the local materials added a vernacular identity to the building. Another quality is the used dimensions corresponds the materials capabilities, and availability.
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Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 65 7 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 36 8 Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 215 9 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 23 10 Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 217 * De la-Hoz used the term “Crecedera” which translates to : “Able to grow, that which can grow”
Like many Islamic Architecture of the time, Moorish buildings would utilizes ornamentation as a part of design. Mainly decorating the spaces with Arabic calligraphy, or geometric patterns that lend the space architectural qualities instead of conveying the feel of arbitrarily plastered on. The abstraction of forms, and its formation complement the aesthetic of the structure. The ornaments display respect for the form and does not conflict with the sense of space. Another point of admiration is how the ornamentation is distributed throughout the building. The ornamentation and the architecture are fused and interplayed with each other leading to a sense of harmonic unity of the two. The ornaments also had subtlety in their presentation with abstraction in decoration, whether it was due to religious restriction, or the Moorish inability for anthropomorphic interpretation. Rafael De la Hoz’s mathematical, and rational analysis of the Cordovan Proportions showcases an appreciation of the successful vernacular implementation of form and organization in Moorish Spanish architecture. The Cordovan Proportion achieved an aesthetic and functional values that transcends the time of its origins. While Chueca’s comparison between Alhambra and modern design approach and philosophy demonstrates the humanistic values the two shared, and how can Spanish architects make used of adapting them in an abstract manner that strengthen the Spanish national identity. The Cordovan proportion has a geometric cohesion due to its basis on an octagon, which is praised by De la Hoz for its easy geometric layout, and its close approximation to the circle. As De la Hoz introduces the Cordovan Proportion he provide multiple examples of its uses, in manners regarding aesthetics, functionality, and symbolism. Another modern appreciation of Moorish architecture is the care to marry the building with nature. While the rest of middle age European cities were suffering in the purgatory of neither access to natural nor the technological advancement to make up for it. The Moorish gardens as describe by Chueca Goitia “an attempt to represent Paradise on Earth11”. Part of the Islamic belief is that heaven is described as a green garden that provides all the need for a human to be comfortable, without the interruption, or the nuisances of earthly problems. The Moorish gardens are based upon that image of heaven, a garden that provides the needs for health and comfort, isolated from the chaos, and worries of the world. Nature has the duality of being both an essential quality for well-being, and a source of danger, or discomfort. Architects have to design to both provide the essentials such as natural light, and ventilation, and to protect from the dangerous elements like the direct solar exposure, and outpour of rain. De la-Hoz showed admiration of the response to the ladder in the buildings of Cordoba. He stated in the beginning of the text “One of these constants, as a result of the Andalusian climate, is the use of the white-reflective lens of the sun. The use of the patio as a cooling element is also due to climatic factors. The thick walls of tapial, magnificent thermal insulation, and distributors of loads for bad land fill, as it happens in Cordoba, is another constant of our civil architecture.12” Then he states in description of the functional aspects of the Cordovan Proportion ” One of the most important maintenance budgets of the Council Provincial de Cordoba was for the repair of decking roofs, until it was decided to tie them up. The slope that reach the roofs of Cordoba is impressive: 37 °” , Then he elaborates “This inclination of the roof coincides practically with that of the diagonal of a Cordoba’s rectangle of horizontal greater side -37 ° 26'- reason why the proportion between its height and base is Cordoba’s.13”
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Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 239 12 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 4 13 De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973, 21
Chueca’s manifesto was aiming to break the mold of the historicism that was occurring in the 1930’s and 40’s, but it was essential for him to maintain the Spanish identity, carefully preserving the values of his nation. While Chueca Described Alhambra in a specific architectural manner, de la Hoz had a different means of analysis. He analyzed architecture in Cordoba in a rational, and mathematical method. His analysis aimed to find an element of beauty in proportions, a rectangle that is not too tall and skinny, or too wide and chubby. A proportion that is to him an element of beauty that is rooted in Spain. The purpose of de La-Hoz’s analysis is to inform other Spanish architects about the numerous and useful applications of the Cordovan proportion. As a man of Cordoba himself he sought to identify the regional canons of Cordoba, and educate others of at as a more fitting proportion to use in Cordoba instead of the Golden ratio. Both have ethics of caring about the human aspect in architecture, and the efficiency resulted in regional design consideration, and their texts respectively revolve around these subject matters.
BIBLIOGRAOHY: * Goitia, Fernando Chueca. Invariant Castizos de la arquitecture espanola. Invariant en la arquitectura hispanoamericana. Madrid: Dossat, 1981, 203-241 * De la-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, La Proporcion Cordobesa. Cordoba: Deputation Provincial, 1973 *De La-Hoz, Rafael, Arderius, Miguel Fisac Madrio. Del Cero Absoluto – Nostra Sectio Proportionalis. Madrid: Real Academia de Doctores, 1994 Appendix Image Sources: * Gonzalez, Marina D. "RAFAEL DE LA-HOZ ARDERIUS y la Proporción cordobesa." http://innovacioneducativa.upm.es/sandbox/pensamiento/chip_geometrico/Lahoz.pdf