La Barceloneta Apartment Building, Barcelona, Spain.

Jose Antonio Coderch, 1951.

An isolated example of modernity.

The exterior wall of the Barceloneta Apartment Building stresses

a vertical composition, in which upright solid and permeable
stripes are alternated in tilted planes. The pervious strips stay
in the realm of abstraction by means of the superimposition of a
pattern, composed of vertical frames of horizontal blinds. On
this strip the rhythm of the slabs is expressed on the exterior,
while the solid strips are finished in a uniform layer of sienna-
colored tiles, oriented vertically. This composition culminates
in an independent marquee that cantilevers beyond the façade
without following its folds.

In a cultural environment
oppressed by an
authoritarian
dictatorship that
explicitly encouraged a
static and reactionary
architecture, this façade
expresses a defiant
attitude with respect to
the prevailing
conventions. The solution
of the exterior wall
detail evidences, first,
an attempt to avoid a
static composition of the
exterior layer, which
would have typically
involved the use of
isolated and repetitive
perforations over a
frontal and opaque wall
of masonry. By contrast,
the design of oblique
planes and the vertical
composition provide a
pronounced dynamism. A
game of pleats
substitutes the typical
extruded façade (with
overlaying of decorative
elements such as frames
and moldings), emphasizing the smoothness of the geometric faces.
Furthermore, the transformation of the cornice into an
overhanging canopy constitutes a response to the heavy and static
eave, typical of conservative canons.

The reinterpretation of a feature of Mediterranean vernacular

architecture - the persiana de visillos or jalousie - far from
being a return to tradition, embodies the reinvention of a long-
established element in order to enable the production of
contemporary architecture within a hostile environment. Instead
of relying on nostalgia, the architect used the opportunity to
recycle a traditional piece into a strictly contemporary
component, challenging the conventional construction standards of
the time.

The autarchic and closed economy imposed by the Franco

dictatorship until 1959 produced a scarcity of materials. Any
piece of technology had to be manufactured in the context of an
isolated and barely industrialized country. Under these
conditions, the use of galvanized steel - rather than the
traditional wood - to resolve the detail of the louvers is a
declaration of intent. Not only the novelty of the material, but
the technology linked to manufacturing processes, represent a
commitment to a sophistication that defied the existing condition
of construction technology in Spain of the 50's. In fact, the
emphasis on the technological complexity of the detail is
evidenced in its process of construction. The company in charge
of building the shades (Llambi.SA) patented the design after
developing it for this building, which was an exceptional and
advanced procedure in its context.

This exceptionality of the solution is supported by the contrast

between its fabrication and the construction in the field. In
order to facilitate the assemblage on site, the blind frames were
subdivided into elements of reasonable size that could be
manipulated without using heavy machinery. In an advanced
technological environment this is not the usual methodology of
construction, as it implies a greater use of expensive labor. By
contrast, at that time unskilled labor in Spain was extremely
cheap, while sophisticated construction methodologies were either
out of reach or involved a prohibiting expense.
In an equivalent but more subtle way, the other element of the
façade, the sienna-colored tile, provides the same reading – a
rigorous modern element subverting a vernacular reference to
Catalonian Modernisme. Rudimentary from a technological
standpoint, its production and implementation does not demand a
significant deployment of mechanical resources1. However, the
rectangular proportion of the tile pieces, the use of only one
1
Rather than demanding the use of expensive cranes, it involves the construction of a
simple scaffold. Building that scaffolding entails many hours of not very qualified
labor, but not advanced material means.
size, their vertical disposition, the lack of decorative filigree
and the absence of any game of patterns, are aspects that clearly
separate the exterior wall - strictly modern – from the examples
of Modernisme, like those of Lluís Domènech i Montaner, Josep
Puig i Cadafalch or Antoni Gaudí. Thus, as with the shutters, a
cultural gap is evidenced by the subversive interpretation of a
“traditional” element, demonstrating opposing underlying criteria
about decoration, composition, industrialization and, therefore,
socio-cultural values.

From the point of view of socio-political meaning, the supposed

evocation of traditional elements facilitates the digestion of
the aesthetics by the established powers. The regime and its
acolytes, reactionary and suspicious, misunderstand and accept
the vernacular references, obviating the subversive and radical
modernity of the facade.

On one hand, the suppression of any figurative allusion from

these quintessential traditional elements stresses the divergence
between reference and interpretation. On the other, the paradox
of choosing a sophisticated technological solution – for the
shutters – implemented with a low-tech construction process
reveals a contradiction. It manifests the aim to produce an
object overly advanced for the technological and cultural
development of its context. This can only be justified by the
determination to insert modern architecture within a politically
authoritative, culturally isolated, socially conservative and
industrially undeveloped environment. Jose Antonio Coderch was
one of the precursors of modern architecture in Spain, and one of
the very few architects at the time that had a relationship with
international colleagues. His design clearly resonates with a
personal belief, representing a rebellion against the conditions
imposed by the political, cultural, social and economic context.

Alberto Montesinos