José Grases Riera
Encyclopedia
José Grases Riera was a Catalan architect.
Born in Barcelona, Grases graduated from the School of Architecture in Barcelona in 1878 and moved to Madrid shortly after. Through to the turn of the century he worked on residential projects, and proposed a realignment of the entire city, the Proyecto de Gran Vía Norte-Sur, which was not adapted but influenced the subsequent urban planning in the city.
In 1902 Grases won a national design competition for the Monument to Alfonso XII of Spain to be erected in the Buen Retiro Park. His design was a grand and elaborate curved colonnade, topped with a bronze equestrian statue of the king by sculptor Mariano Benlliure
, and incorporating the work of 21 other artists. The monument was inaugurated on July 3, 1922, after Grases' death.
The architect also designed perhaps the most significant example of Art Nouveau
in Madrid, the extraordinary 1903 Palacio Longoria, built for financier Javier González Longoria with a surface fabric seemingly sculpted out of cake frosting. (Many sources indicate Grases was influenced by Antoni Gaudí
, but this stylistically dubious, and there's no clear evidence for it.)
Other work in Madrid includes the Palacio de la Equitativa, built for the insurance company from 1887 to 1891, with its ornate tower and sculpted elephant heads, and the 1901 monument to Antonio Cánovas del Castillo
in the Plaza de la Marina Española, with sculptor Joaquín Bilbao.
Born in Barcelona, Grases graduated from the School of Architecture in Barcelona in 1878 and moved to Madrid shortly after. Through to the turn of the century he worked on residential projects, and proposed a realignment of the entire city, the Proyecto de Gran Vía Norte-Sur, which was not adapted but influenced the subsequent urban planning in the city.
In 1902 Grases won a national design competition for the Monument to Alfonso XII of Spain to be erected in the Buen Retiro Park. His design was a grand and elaborate curved colonnade, topped with a bronze equestrian statue of the king by sculptor Mariano Benlliure
Mariano Benlliure
Mariano Benlliure was a Spanish sculptor, who executed many public monuments and religious sculptures in Spain, working in a heroic realist style....
, and incorporating the work of 21 other artists. The monument was inaugurated on July 3, 1922, after Grases' death.
The architect also designed perhaps the most significant example of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
in Madrid, the extraordinary 1903 Palacio Longoria, built for financier Javier González Longoria with a surface fabric seemingly sculpted out of cake frosting. (Many sources indicate Grases was influenced by Antoni Gaudí
Antoni Gaudí
Antoni Gaudí i Cornet was a Spanish Catalan architect and figurehead of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works reflect his highly individual and distinctive style and are largely concentrated in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, notably his magnum opus, the Sagrada Família.Much of Gaudí's work was...
, but this stylistically dubious, and there's no clear evidence for it.)
Other work in Madrid includes the Palacio de la Equitativa, built for the insurance company from 1887 to 1891, with its ornate tower and sculpted elephant heads, and the 1901 monument to Antonio Cánovas del Castillo
Antonio Cánovas del Castillo
Antonio Cánovas del Castillo was a Spanish politician and historian known principally for his role in supporting the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy to the Spanish throne and for his death at the hands of an anarchist assassin, Michele Angiolillo.-Early career:Born in Málaga as the son of...
in the Plaza de la Marina Española, with sculptor Joaquín Bilbao.