Santiago Calatrava Valls (born July 28, 1951) is an internationally recognized
and award-winning Spanish architect, sculptor and structural engineer whose
principal office is in Zurich, Switzerland. Classed now among the elite
designers of the world, he has offices in Zurich, Paris, New York and elsewhere.
Calatrava was born in Benimámet, a rural part of Valencia, Spain, where he
pursued undergraduate studies at the Architecture School and Arts and Crafts
School. Following graduation in 1975, he enrolled in the Swiss Federal Institute
of Technology (ETH) in Zürich, Switzerland for graduate work in civil
engineering. In 1981, after completing his doctoral thesis, "On the Foldability
of Space Frames", he started his architecture and engineering practice.
Puente del Alamillo at night, Seville, Spain, (1992)Calatrava's early career was
dedicated largely to bridges and train stations, the designs for which elevated
the status of civil engineering projects to new heights. His elegant and daring
Montjuic Communications Tower in Barcelona, Spain (1991) in the heart of the
1992 Olympic site was a turning point in his career, leading to a wide range of
commissions. The Quadracci Pavilion (2001) of the Milwaukee Art Museum was his
first US building. Calatrava’s entry into high-rise design began with an
innovative 54 storey high twisting tower, called Turning Torso (2005), located
in Malmö, Sweden.
Calatrava is currently designing the future train station - World Trade Center
Transportation Hub - at Ground Zero in New York City.
Calatrava’s style has been heralded as bridging the division between structural
engineering and architecture. In this, he continues a tradition of Spanish
modernist engineering that includes Félix Candela and Antonio GaudÃ.
Nonetheless, his style is very personal and derives from numerous studies he
makes of the human body and the natural world.
Calatrava is also a prolific sculptor and painter, claiming that the practice of
architecture combines all the arts into one. In 2005, the Metropolitan Museum of
Art in New York City held an exhibition of his artistic work, entitled "Santiago
Calatrava: Sculpture Into Architecture." Exhibitions of his work have also taken
place in Germany, England, Spain, Italy and elsewhere.
www.Calatrava.com
