Published on March 19th, 2013 | by neversa3
0A Spanish Fly On The Wall: How Spanish high art influences its modern architectures
A Spanish Fly On The Wall: How Spanish high art influences its modern architectures
Spanish art masters like Francisco Goya, El Greco, Salvador Dali, and the Pablo Picasso have been the influence of different art warriors, be it photography, painting, filmmaking, or sculpture. However, one overlooked influence of Spanish artists in other fields is architecture. In Italy, artists like Raphael and Da Vinci helped shape Renaissance architecture by adding elements of fine arts such as painting church domes while the plaster is still wet, which ultimately became known as fresco. In Spain, while gothic churches were brought from central Europe and Moorish influence were fortunately preserved, the impact of past and present Spanish art masters are more often than not ignored, with their legacy enclosed primarily on the four corners of a canvas frame. Here are some of the architectural marvels that hold a piece of Spanish high art.
1.Gran Casino Sardinero
While Gran Casino Sardinero might probably be one of the many baroque buildings in the port-city of Santander, it actually stands out from other baroque-inspired buildings due to the touch of modernity present in the said casino. Aside from being a cultural masterpiece, it also exhibits the passion of the Spanish for gambling, especially poker. Aside from France and Germany, Spain is also one of the few poker hubs in Europe. With more than one hundred casinos built throughout the many corners of Spain, the country also hosts some of the best players in the whole world such as Ana Marquez, Carlos Mortensen, and Jaime Alguesuari; one can imply that Spain is a poker powerhouse of global poker giants. Due to their respect for their work however, Spanish people cannot visit poker joints as often as they want. Fortunately, there are online poker sites like partypoker where they can enjoy poker 24/7 without even leaving their doorsteps.
2. Dali Museum
Salvador Dali, the man famous for his painting The Persistence of Memory and his flamboyantly pointed moustache, not just became immortal due to his works but became immortal as well as a physical temple that houses those said works. Designed by architect Yann Weymouth of HOK, the building is a combination of a concrete box with a geodesic glass bubble referred to as “enigma”, homage to the dome that embellishes Dali’s museum back in his home country. Aside from housing some of his works that hold paramount importance to his artistic endeavor and to the enrichment of surrealism as well, it also shows some films and photographs of the great painter with a great moustache. Touring the museum will not just take you through the depths of the painter’s thought-provoking and mind-altering dream visions, but the very space itself is a twisted sojourn to the outlandish center of his mind.
