Purism (architecture)
Encyclopedia
Historiography
Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...
term that refers to an initial phase of Renaissance architecture in Spain
Architecture of the Spanish Renaissance
Renaissance architecture was that style of architecture which evolved firstly in Florence and then Rome and other parts of Italy as the result of Humanism and a revived interest in Classical architecture...
, which took place between 1530 and 1560, after to Isabelline Gothic
Isabelline Gothic
Isabelline Gothic , is a style of the Crown of Castile during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, who represents the transition between late Gothic and early Renaissance, with original features and decorative influences of Mudéjar art, Flanders and in a lesser extent, Italy.The Isabelline style...
and prior to the Herrerian
Herrerian
The Herrerian was developed in Spain during the last third of the 16th century under the reign of Philip II , and continued in force in the 17th century, but transformed by the Baroque current of the time...
architecture in the last third of 16th century. The name "Prince Philip" refers to the period in which Philip II of Spain
Philip II of Spain
Philip II was King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily, and, while married to Mary I, King of England and Ireland. He was lord of the Seventeen Provinces from 1556 until 1581, holding various titles for the individual territories such as duke or count....
(born in 1527) had not yet received the inheritance of the Spanish Monarchy
Spanish monarchy
The Monarchy of Spain, constitutionally referred to as The Crown and commonly referred to as the Spanish monarchy or Hispanic Monarchy, is a constitutional institution and an historic office of Spain...
by abdication of his father the Emperor Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
(1556). The name "Serlian" is due to the influential architect and treatise Sebastiano Serlio
Sebastiano Serlio
Sebastiano Serlio was an Italian Mannerist architect, who was part of the Italian team building the Palace of Fontainebleau...
(in addition to the architectural element called Serlian in his honor). The greco-roman
Greco-Roman world
The Greco-Roman world, Greco-Roman culture, or the term Greco-Roman , when used as an adjective, as understood by modern scholars and writers, refers to those geographical regions and countries that culturally were directly, protractedly and intimately influenced by the language, culture,...
, the purist
Purist
A purist is one who desires that an item remains true to its essence and free from adulterating or diluting influences. The term may be used in almost any field, and can be applied either to the self or to others. Use of the term may be either pejorative or complimentary, depending on the context...
and the casticist
Castizo
Castizo is a Spanish word with a general meaning of "pure" or "genuine". The feminine form is castiza. From this meaning it evolved other meanings, such as "typical of an area" and it was also used for one of the colonial Spanish race categories, the castas, that evolved in the seventeenth...
are relate to the interpretation given to different elements of style, whether intellectual, formal, structural or decorative. Until then, writers of the period termed the classicist
Classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for classical antiquity, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. The art of classicism typically seeks to be formal and restrained: of the Discobolus Sir Kenneth Clark observed, "if we object to his restraint...
forms of the Italian Renaissance
Italian Renaissance
The Italian Renaissance began the opening phase of the Renaissance, a period of great cultural change and achievement in Europe that spanned the period from the end of the 13th century to about 1600, marking the transition between Medieval and Early Modern Europe...
as the roman (Diego de Sagredo Las Medidas del Romano, 1526), while the late-Gothic forms were called the modern. For a more stylistic periodization more common in the art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, at that point of the 16th century the Cinquecento
Cinquecento
Cinquecento is a term used to describe the Italian Renaissance of the 16th century, including the current styles of art, music, literature, and architecture.-Art:...
had entered in its Mannerist
Mannerism
Mannerism is a period of European art that emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. It lasted until about 1580 in Italy, when a more Baroque style began to replace it, but Northern Mannerism continued into the early 17th century throughout much of Europe...
phase, while for the Spanish art is commonly used the expression High Renaissance (reserving the term Low Renaissance for the last third of the century).
Description
The introduction of the RenaissanceRenaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
in Spain coincided with a period of great splendor political, economic and social, after the union between Castile
Crown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
and Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
, the end of the Reconquista
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
, the discovery of America
Voyages of Christopher Columbus
In the early modern period, the voyages of Columbus initiated European exploration and colonization of the American continents, and are thus of great significance in world history. Christopher Columbus was a navigator and an admiral for Castile, a country that later founded modern Spain...
and the coming to power of the Habsburgs
Habsburg Spain
Habsburg Spain refers to the history of Spain over the 16th and 17th centuries , when Spain was ruled by the major branch of the Habsburg dynasty...
. Although in its beginning the new style from Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
lived with the persistence of Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
and Mudéjar
Mudéjar
Mudéjar is the name given to individual Moors or Muslims of Al-Andalus who remained in Iberia after the Christian Reconquista but were not converted to Christianity...
forms, gradually took hold and served as the expression of the new political power, linked to the new conception of the Catholic Counter-Reformation
Counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation was the period of Catholic revival beginning with the Council of Trent and ending at the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648 as a response to the Protestant Reformation.The Counter-Reformation was a comprehensive effort, composed of four major elements:#Ecclesiastical or...
. In the first third of the 16th century came the Plateresque
Plateresque
Plateresque, meaning "in the manner of a silversmith" , was an artistic movement, especially architectural, traditionally held to be exclusive to Spain and its territories, which appeared between the late Gothic and early Renaissance in the late 15th century, and spread over the next two centuries...
, fine and elegant style of decoration, characterized by the use of rustication
Rustication (architecture)
thumb|upright|Two different styles of rustication in the [[Palazzo Medici-Riccardi]] in [[Florence]].In classical architecture rustication is an architectural feature that contrasts in texture with the smoothly finished, squared block masonry surfaces called ashlar...
on the exterior walls, baluster
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
ed column
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s with Corinthian
Corinthian order
The Corinthian order is one of the three principal classical orders of ancient Greek and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric and Ionic. When classical architecture was revived during the Renaissance, two more orders were added to the canon, the Tuscan order and the Composite order...
capitals
Capital (architecture)
In architecture the capital forms the topmost member of a column . It mediates between the column and the load thrusting down upon it, broadening the area of the column's supporting surface...
, arch
Arch
An arch is a structure that spans a space and supports a load. Arches appeared as early as the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamian brick architecture and their systematic use started with the Ancient Romans who were the first to apply the technique to a wide range of structures.-Technical aspects:The...
es or basket-handle, and pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
s decorated with grotesques.
In front of the excessive decorate of Plateresque
Plateresque
Plateresque, meaning "in the manner of a silversmith" , was an artistic movement, especially architectural, traditionally held to be exclusive to Spain and its territories, which appeared between the late Gothic and early Renaissance in the late 15th century, and spread over the next two centuries...
style, the Purism sought ways simpler and refined, in a sober and classic line, balance and technical perfection, taking more on structural issues and harmonious proportions. The architects have better preparation and training, with the publication of several theoretical treatises as Las Medidas del Romano, Diego de Sagredo (Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
, 1526), first Renaissance Treaty writing outside Italy, which highlights the prevalence of proportion and the proper disposal of the elements over the decoration.
The purism was characterized by the use of oval or barrel vaults, arch
Arch
An arch is a structure that spans a space and supports a load. Arches appeared as early as the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamian brick architecture and their systematic use started with the Ancient Romans who were the first to apply the technique to a wide range of structures.-Technical aspects:The...
es, half domes and carved decoration limited to some strategic areas, evaluating the smooth space as an exponent of this new more pure and harmonious aesthetic. In general, the aspect of Purist architecture is of balance and monumentality, compared to the apparent fragility and decorativism of plateresque.
Works
The main signs of the style are found in CastileCastile (historical region)
A former kingdom, Castile gradually merged with its neighbours to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain when united with the Crown of Aragon and the Kingdom of Navarre...
and Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
.
In Toledo
Toledo, Spain
Toledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
developed his work Alonso de Covarrubias, launched in the plateresque
Plateresque
Plateresque, meaning "in the manner of a silversmith" , was an artistic movement, especially architectural, traditionally held to be exclusive to Spain and its territories, which appeared between the late Gothic and early Renaissance in the late 15th century, and spread over the next two centuries...
(Courtyard of the Hospital de la Santa Cruz), which reached the position of arquitecto real (1537). Among his buildings are the Puerta de Bisagra
Puerta de Bisagra
The Puerta de Bisagra is a city gate of Toledo, Spain, built in the 10th century, in the time of the taifa of Toledo. It is also called 'Bisagra Antigua' to distinguish it from the Puerta de Bisagra Nueva which was built in 1559...
(in the form of a triumphal arch
Triumphal arch
A triumphal arch is a monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road. In its simplest form a triumphal arch consists of two massive piers connected by an arch, crowned with a flat entablature or attic on which a statue might be...
), the Alcázar
Alcázar of Toledo
The Alcázar of Toledo is a stone fortification located in the highest part of Toledo, Spain. Once used as a Roman palace in the 3rd century, it was restored under Charles I and Philip II of Spain in the 1540's...
(rectangular and severe facade flanked by towers) and the Hospital de Tavera (1541), which for its classicism and sobriety aimed for Herrerian style. In Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares , meaning Citadel on the river Henares, is a Spanish city, whose historical centre is one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites, and one of the first bishoprics founded in Spain...
built the Palacio Arzobispal, a monumental facade topped by a gallery of arches.
Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón
Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón was a Spanish architect of the Renaissance.He was born at Rascafría. His workings include the Palace of Monterrey in Salamanca, the Palace of Guzmanes in León, and the facade of the Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso at the University of Alcalá de Henares...
worked mainly in Salamanca
Salamanca
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, in the community of Castile and León. Because it is known for its beautiful buildings and urban environment, the Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It is the most important university city in Spain and is known for its contributions to...
, but was involved in projects throughout Castile. Also formed in the plateresque, although his most representative works are of purism. In 1539, projected –with Fray Martín de Santiago–, the Palace of Monterrey, built only in one quarter, but that is a remarkable example of civil architecture, with magnificent towers with crenellations and lookouts drafts. One of his best works would be the façade of Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso
Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso
The Colegio Mayor de San Ildefonso is a building located in Alcalá de Henares, Spain. It was declared Bien de Interés Cultural in 1914....
in the University of Alcalá de Henares(1537-1553), decorated with evenly distributed at regular intervals, pediment
Pediment
A pediment is a classical architectural element consisting of the triangular section found above the horizontal structure , typically supported by columns. The gable end of the pediment is surrounded by the cornice moulding...
and top of crenellations with garlands. Other works were the Palacio de los Guzmanes
Palacio de los Guzmanes
The Palacio de los Guzmanes is a Renaissance building in the city of León; it is the seat of Provincial Government of León.The architect Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón built the palace in the 16th century, commissioned by the aristocratic family of Guzman....
in León, the church of Santa María Magdalena in Valladolid
Valladolid
Valladolid is a historic city and municipality in north-central Spain, situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within three wine-making regions: Ribera del Duero, Rueda and Cigales...
and the façades of the cathedralics dependences of das Platerías in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela
Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral of the archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain. The cathedral is the reputed burial-place of Saint James the Greater, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ. It is the destination of the Way of St...
(1540).
Diego de Siloé
Diego Siloe
Diego Siloe or Diego de Siloé was a Spanish Renaissance architect and sculptor, progenitor of the Granadan school of sculpture. He developed the majority of his work in Andalusia.-Biography:...
also was initially one of the leading exponents of plateresque (Courtyard of the Colegio Mayor de Santiago el Zebedeo
Colegio Mayor de Santiago el Zebedeo
The Colegio Mayor de Santiago, el Zebedeo, Colegio del Arzobispo or Colegio Mayor de Fonseca is a historical edifice in Salamanca, Spain, founded in 1519 by Alonso de Fonseca, archbishop of Santiago de Compostela , in order to provide Galician students with a college in which to study within the...
, Salamanca
Salamanca
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, in the community of Castile and León. Because it is known for its beautiful buildings and urban environment, the Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It is the most important university city in Spain and is known for its contributions to...
; Golden Staircase of the Cathedral of Burgos). Subsequently spent most of his work in Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, where he made the pantheon for El Gran Capitán in the Monastery of San Jerónimo
Monastery of Saint Jerome (Granada)
The Monastery of St. Jerome is a Roman Catholic church and Hieronymite monastery in Granada, Spain. Architecturally, it is in the Renaissance style...
, in collaboration with the Italian Jacopo Torni
Jacopo Torni
Jacopo Torni , also known as Jacobo Fiorentin, L'Indaco, and Jacopo dell'Indaco, was an Italian painter. He was a student of Domenico Ghirlandaio , and the brother of painter Francesco Torni...
. His main work was the Cathedral of Granada (begun in 1528), continuing the original Gothic design by Enrique Egas, who made numerous changes, became the presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
in a round dome shaped, preceded by a large triumphal arch type. In the pillars
Column
A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
of the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
s increased height with small columns on an entablature located in the capital, as had Brunelleschi
Filippo Brunelleschi
Filippo Brunelleschi was one of the foremost architects and engineers of the Italian Renaissance. He is perhaps most famous for inventing linear perspective and designing the dome of the Florence Cathedral, but his accomplishments also included bronze artwork, architecture , mathematics,...
in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. This provision influenced later works such as the cathedrals of Málaga and Guadix
Guadix Cathedral
The Guadix Cathedral, Cathedral of Guadix, or Cathedral of the Incarnation is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Guadix, province of Granada, Spain. Construction of the building began in the 16th century and was completed in the mid-18th century...
, as well as Guadalajara (Mexico)
Guadalajara Cathedral
The Guadalajara Cathedral or Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady , located in Guadalajara, Jalisco, is the Roman Catholic cathedral of the Archdiocese of Guadalajara and a minor basilica. It is built in the Renaissance style, with neo-gothic towers....
, Lima and Cuzco (Peru).
Pedro Machuca
Pedro Machuca is mainly remembered as the Spanish architect responsible for the design of the Palace of Charles V adjacent to the Alcazar in Granada. The significance of this work is that it represents likely the first major classic Renaissance style building in Spain...
, author of the Palace of Charles V
Palace of Charles V
The Palace of Charles V is a Renacentist construction in Granada, southern Spain, located on the top of the hill of the Assabica, inside the Nasrid fortification of the Alhambra. It was commanded by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, who wished to establish his residence close to the Alhambra palaces...
at the Alhambra
Alhambra
The Alhambra , the complete form of which was Calat Alhambra , is a palace and fortress complex located in the Granada, Andalusia, Spain...
(started in 1528 and interrupted to death of the architect in 1550). The palace included a circular courtyard and an octagonal
Octagonal
Octagonal is a retired champion New Zealand-bred, Australian raced Thoroughbred racehorse, also known as 'The Big O' or 'Occy'. He was by the champion sire Zabeel, out of the champion broodmare Eight Carat, who also produced Group One winners Mouawad, Kaapstad, Diamond Lover and Marquise.Trained...
chapel, which was never built. The courtyard, of Bramante
Donato Bramante
Donato Bramante was an Italian architect, who introduced the Early Renaissance style to Milan and the High Renaissance style to Rome, where his most famous design was St...
influence, is one of the masterpieces of the Purism and the Spanish Renaissance architecture, example of balance and perfection of classical, with two-story with columns of Doric
Doric order
The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of ancient Greek or classical architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian.-History:...
-Tuscan order
Tuscan order
Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...
(lower) and Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
(upper).
Another great example of Andalusian purism was Andrés de Vandelvira
Andrés de Vandelvira
Andrés de Vandelvira was a Spanish architect, active mainly in Jaén, Uclés, Baeza, and Úbeda during the Renaissance. He was born in Andrés de Vandelvira (1509–1575) was a Spanish architect, active mainly in Jaén, Uclés, Baeza, and Úbeda during the Renaissance. He was born in Andrés de...
, of own style that was directed then to Mannerism
Mannerism
Mannerism is a period of European art that emerged from the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520. It lasted until about 1580 in Italy, when a more Baroque style began to replace it, but Northern Mannerism continued into the early 17th century throughout much of Europe...
. One of his characteristic was the use of vault
Vault (architecture)
A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...
s, and in the Sacra Capilla del Salvador in Úbeda
Úbeda
Úbeda is a town in the province of Jaén in Spain's autonomous community of Andalusia, with some 35,600 inhabitants. Both this city and the neighboring city of Baeza benefited from extensive patronage in the early 16th century resulting in the construction of a series of Renaissance style palaces...
(1536) -project initiated by Siloé, with who Vandelvira worked in its beginning-. His great work was the Cathedral of Jaén
Jaén Cathedral
The Assumption of the Virgin Cathedral is a Spanish Renaissance cathedral located in Santa María Square in Jaén, Spain, opposite the Town Hall and the Episcopal Palace.Construction of the cathedral began in 1249 on the ruins of an ancient mosque...
(begun in 1540), rectangular, with pillars inspired by the Cathedral of Granada. Remarkably in this work the Sacristy, with double entablature and overlap of arches of Mannerist style, although of great structural simplicity. Other works were: the Chapel of San Francisco (1546), the Torre del Tardón in Alcaraz
Alcaraz
Alcaraz is a municipality in Albacete, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It has a population of 1,734. The two bell towers facing each other at the centre of the town are noteworthy....
(1555), the palaces of Vela-Cobos (1561) and Vázquez de Molina (1562) and the Hospital de Santiago (1562-1575) , all in Úbeda
Úbeda
Úbeda is a town in the province of Jaén in Spain's autonomous community of Andalusia, with some 35,600 inhabitants. Both this city and the neighboring city of Baeza benefited from extensive patronage in the early 16th century resulting in the construction of a series of Renaissance style palaces...
. The work of Vandelvira left a strong mark on subsequent architecture, especially in Andalusia, Murcia and Alicante.
In Seville highlights the construction of the Royal Chapel of the cathedral and the Hospital de las Cinco Llagas
Hospital de las Cinco Llagas
El Hospital de las Cinco Llagas in Seville, Spain is the current seat of the Parliament of Andalusia....
, by Martín de Gaínza, and the top of the Giralda, by Hernán Ruiz the Younger
Hernán Ruiz the Younger
Hernán Ruiz the Younger was a Spanish Renaissance architect, active mostly in Andalusia.He was born in Córdoba or Burgos, the son of Hernán Ruiz the Elder, also an architect...
, of Serlian
Sebastiano Serlio
Sebastiano Serlio was an Italian Mannerist architect, who was part of the Italian team building the Palace of Fontainebleau...
influence, that influence the later Andalusian altars.