Mallorca (Part VIII) – Photography Focus 2: Modernista Architecture

by delacybrown on April 11, 2013

As readers of my Valencia series of posts back in February will know, I am a huge admirer of architecture, both ancient and modern. But perhaps my favourite style of architecture is a period sitting somewhere in between – an era when curved decorative lines replaced rigid linear forms, when natural forms such as flowers, leaves and waves appeared to sprout, almost like nature has regained supremacy over man, from the plasterwork and wrought iron of buildings, and when aesthetic considerations reigned over calculations of cost and practicality. I am of course talking about the era of the art nouveau, which, in a progressively more industrialised Catalonia at the beginning of the 19th Century, had its very own, perhaps more eccentric off-shoot – modernisme.

While perhaps not as abundant as the prized examples of modernismo architecture which can be found in the city of Barcelona, a lesser known collection of what are quite frankly gems of the period are ripe for discovery in Palma de Mallorca. Palma was developing a wealthy and increasingly outward-looking bourgeoisie by the end of the 19th century, and come the 1900s, the development of wealth and industry, as well as an increased awareness and pride in Catalan identity, encouraged the rich of Palma to display their wealth in a progressive and concrete form – through the construction of modernist palaces.

The result is a central core of Palma (from the Passeig de Born Eastwards to the Placa Major) which is full of surprisingly rich examples of modernismo, surely second only to Barcelona, who’s most famous proponent of modernismo, Antoni Gaudi, himself spent time in the city of Palma, overseeing the restoration of Palma’s cathedral. While Gaudi did not add any of his infamous weird and wonderful architectural creations to the streets of the city, many of his rivals in Modernisme did. These included Lluis Domenech i Montaner, who built the lavish Gran Hotel (which is today the home of the Fundacio La Caixa), and Josep Cassayas who built two exquisitely curvaceous twin apartment buildings on the Placa Mercat, just opposite the Gran Hotel. I love in particular the detailing of these apartments, for example the curved window shutters which seamlessly align with the curves of the building’s delicate facade.

Meanwhile, just south of the Placa Mayor, the Can Rei, which today houses a takeaway of my beloved Cappuccino Grand Cafe, bears the closest resemblance to the great masterpieces of Gaudi, the use of ceramics and floral motifs, as well as balconies flanked with dragons reminding me of Gaudi’s Casa Batllo in Barcelona, while next door, the former department store L’Aguila by Gaspar Bennassar features beautiful geometric windows which appear to forecast the move towards the more linear art deco. Further afield beyond Palma in Soller, the pupil of Gaudi, Joan Rubio i Bellver, made his mark, building the astonishingly original and imposing facade of Sant Bartomeu church, while next door, he constructed the fortress-like structure of the C’an Prunera, which includes a wonderful twin corner balcony and some beautifully complex wrought iron window grilles.

I leave you with a selection of my photos of these stunning feats of architecture, and in particular many of the details which make the buildings so utterly unique, and aesthetically superior to anything built before or since. In addition, these photos include a few shop fronts which appear to slot seamlessly into the Modernist mood. Palma’s modernist profile is just another facade to this captivating creative city, but one which to my mind is too often overlooked when compared with cities such as Barcelona. As these photos will show, this is yet another reason why Palma should be proclaimed a priority destination of artistic pilgrimage for art and architecture lovers everywhere.

: The Gran Hotel

: Tiles on the Can Rei

: The Gran Hotel

: Can Rei

: Window of L’Aguila

: Window grill in Soller

: Window detailing on the Can Rei

: The Cassayas apartments

: Rubio i Bellver’s fortress building in Soller

: The church in Soller

: Shutters in the Cassayas apartments

: Beautiful wooden miradores

: Fine lamp detailing

: A Modernismo shop front

: The Cassayas apartments

: Grand miradores balconies

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