Renaissance Architecture in Spain: Styles and Evolution
Renaissance Architecture in Spain
The Emergence of the Renaissance in Spain: Chronology and Historical Context
Spain maintained strong relations with Italy due to the numerous campaigns waged by Ferdinand of Aragon, the Crown of Aragon’s dominion over Naples and Sicily, and the continuous exchange of artists and materials between the Italian states and the Hispanic monarchy. This allowed the essence of the Renaissance to be assimilated by the end of the 15th century and spread throughout the 16th century.
The social characteristics of Spain differed significantly from those of Italy during the Renaissance’s gestation period. While the revival of commercial activity and the urban world marked the Italian context, in Spain, at the dawn of the 16th century, this phenomenon was strong only in Catalonia and Valencia. Furthermore, while the rise of the bourgeoisie in Italy made them important patrons of Renaissance artists, in Spain, the Church, the nobility, and the absolutist monarchy held economic power. The political circumstances, marked by achieving national unity and the discovery of the New World in the late 15th century, made Spain a kingdom with great prospects, facilitating the penetration of the Renaissance.
This explains why the Renaissance in Spain developed under the patronage of the nobility, the Court, and the Church, who dictated the artistic needs.
Spanish Renaissance Architecture
Spanish Renaissance architecture can be structured into three phases or periods: Plateresco Style, Purist or Classic Style, and Herreran Style. However, it’s essential to discuss the evolution of architectural forms throughout the 15th century to understand the development of the Renaissance style.
A) The Evolution of Architectural Forms in the Late 15th Century
Early 15th-century architectural forms, characterized by clarity and moderate decoration, evolved towards excessive ornamentation, culminating during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella. Artists, primarily serving the wealthy nobility and royalty, expressed a desire for grandeur in their works.
Architectural lines became increasingly ornate, blurring their original forms. This style, exemplified by San Juan de los Reyes in Toledo by Juan Guas, is often called the Elizabethan style. Another example of this transition from Gothic to Renaissance is the Palace of the Duke of the Infantry in Guadalajara, also by Juan Guas, where the façade displays a mixture of both styles.
B) The First Renaissance: The Plateresco Style
This style developed during the first half of the 16th century under Charles I of Spain (Charles V of Germany), primarily in Castile (Burgos, Toledo, Guadalajara, Salamanca, and Valladolid), and later in Seville. It’s an ornamental style, ranging from late flamboyant Gothic to fully consolidated Renaissance forms, free from Gothic survival, until the emergence of the Classicist style influenced by Italy.
The defining feature is the decorative profusion, combining Italian and Hispanic elements: medallions, badges, balustrades, human and animal figures, and interwoven plants (grotesques). This intricate decoration, likened to the work of silversmiths, gave the style its name “Plateresco.”
The Plateresco style also includes the Cisneros style, developed in Toledo under Cardinal Cisneros, primarily by architect Peter Gumiel, characterized by strong Mudejar influence.
Significant Plateresco artists and works include:
- Francisco de Colonia: The Gate of Skins, Burgos Cathedral – An altarpiece-like façade with intricate sculptures and ornamentation.
- Diego de Siloam: The Golden Staircase, Burgos Cathedral – Richly carved with iconography, plants, and fantastical creatures.
- Peter Gumiel: The Auditorium of the University of Alcalá de Henares – Featuring an exquisite Mudejar coffered ceiling and Plateresque plaster walls.
- Lorenzo Vázquez: The College of Santa Cruz, Valladolid – Façade decorated with rusticated blocks, arches, and heraldic motifs; and the Palace of Medinaceli, Cogolludo – Rusticated façade with Gothic reminiscences.
- Anonymous: Façade of the University of Salamanca – Highly decorated façade resembling an altarpiece, with medallions, shields, and grotesques.
- Juan de Álava: Façade of the Church of San Esteban, Salamanca – A prime example of Plateresco, designed as a home-altar with rich decoration.
- Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón: Monterrey Palace, Salamanca – Prototype of the palace with towers and sumptuous decoration, featuring Plateresque balconies and windows.
C) The Renaissance Classicism: Purist Style
This style coexisted with Plateresco during the mid-16th century. It’s characterized by a return to classical forms, influenced by Italian Renaissance architecture. Space is conceived as a unitary whole, with arches and padded walls creating a harmonious and balanced appearance. Decoration is restrained, primarily adorning doors and windows with classically inspired elements.
Significant Purist artists and works include:
- Rodrigo Gil de Hontañón: Façade of the University of Alcalá de Henares – Three-bodied façade with decorative elements, pediment, and a traditional Spanish gallery.
- Alonso de Covarrubias: Courtyards and Stairs of the Hospital de la Santa Cruz, Toledo – Renaissance arches and staircases; Façade of the Alcázar of Toledo – Strong geometry with corner towers and a horizontal façade; and the Bisagra Gate, Toledo – City gate flanked by towers and decorated with pediments.
- Pedro Machuca: Palace of Charles V, Granada – Introduction of Italian classicism, featuring a circular courtyard and a harmonious façade.
- Diego de Siloam: Granada Cathedral – Originally Gothic, Siloam adapted it into a prominent Renaissance building, featuring a dome-covered central space and Brunelleschi-influenced elements.
- Andrés de Vandelvira: Jaén Cathedral – Three naves with Corinthian columns and decorated vaults; Chapel of San Salvador, Úbeda – Funeral chapel with a sculptural façade; and the Palace of the Chains, Úbeda – Andalusian Renaissance classicism with a façade featuring pediments, skylights, and caryatids.
D) Architecture Under Spanish Renaissance: The Herreran Style
This style, also known as the style of Herrera and El Escorial, emerged during the last third of the 16th century under Philip II. It breaks from the previous style by introducing forms of the Italian Cinquecento and Mannerism, characterized by great decorative sobriety, aligning with the Counter-Reformation’s austerity.
The style is named after Juan de Herrera, architect of the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. Started by Juan Bautista de Toledo, Herrera took over after Toledo’s death in 1567. The monastery is characterized by dominant constructive elements, an almost total absence of decoration, straight lines, cubic volumes, simple geometric shapes, and an emphasis on the horizontal, broken only by corner towers and the basilica’s dome. This monumental building represents the grandeur of the Spanish Empire and its king.