Antonio Palacios. 150 years
Antonio Palacios, an essential figure in the history of Spanish architecture, left an undeniable mark on the city of Madrid and an immense legacy in our underground. On the 150th anniversary of his birth, we take a look back over his career in order to promote his work and discover his most personal side.
His role
Antonio Palacios is renowned for his influential contributions to Modernist and Rationalist architecture in Spain. His early 20th-century buildings continue to be a prominent feature of Madrid's skyline. As a witness to a period of substantial change, he significantly contributed to Madrid's renewal and modernization, designing several of the city’s most iconic structures. He was also responsible for the design and aesthetic of the first subway lines, the organisation of their entrances, the Metro’s distinctive diamond logo, and many other projects.
Su huella
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Exposición: Antonio Palacios. El Arquitecto de Metro Lugar: Real Casa de Correos, Puerta del Sol, 1 Fecha: hasta el 30 de junio Horario: 10:00 a 14:00 horas y de 16 a 20:00 horas Visitas guiadas: a las horas en punto con cita previa Acceso gratuito |
El legado del arquitecto en fotos, maquetas, planos y documentos inéditos en una exposición que acoge la Real Casa de Correos
El icónico rombo de Metro, las estaciones, sus accesos y tantos otros elementos como los tótems o el templete de Gran Vía no serían tal y como los conocemos hoy si no fuera por la huella tan característica que dejó su arquitecto, Antonio Palacios. Su diseño hoy perdura en muchísimos aspectos de la red del suburbano y por eso Metro le rinde homenaje con una gran exposición que acoge la Real Casa de Correos, en la Puerta del Sol, coincidiendo con el 150 aniversario de su nacimiento.
Es la primera muestra de estas características con la que se pretende difundir el inmenso legado del que fuera una figura esencial en la historia de la arquitectura española y del suburbano desde que comenzara su construcción en 1917, hasta su fallecimiento en 1945. Esta muestra gratuita, que abre sus puertas de 10:00 a 14:00 y de 16 a 20:00 horas y ofrece visitas guiadas, supone un recorrido desde que la Compañía Metropolitana Alfonso XIII fuera un proyecto hasta completar las primeras cuatro líneas de la red de Metro.
Hasta el próximo 30 de junio, en uno de los patios de la Real Casa de Correos, a través de contenidos gráficos y audiovisuales de gran formato, maquetas y planos, se puede conocer de primera mano el trabajo que Palacios llevó a cabo en el subsuelo de Madrid cuando nadie sabía lo que era este medio de transporte.
En este recorrido se aprecia su faceta como arquitecto de las primeras estaciones, de los edificios industriales (como la Nave de Motores, abierta al público como museo) así como los proyectos de generación y transformación eléctrica de las calles de Castelló y Olid.
En estos 355 metros cuadrados de exposición, hay diferentes áreas dedicadas a su vida y obra, a las estaciones y subestaciones eléctricas para dar a conocer de la forma más atractiva el trabajo de Palacios y la importancia de éste como elemento transformador de la ciudad y su contexto histórico.
El trabajo de investigación en los archivos de Metro para recuperar tanto de imágenes como documentos públicos y privados, que salen, en algunos casos, a la luz por primera vez, ha sido fundamental para poder hacer realidad esta exposición.
Asimismo, se pueden descubrir, a través de maquetas, piezas únicas y singulares como la histórica Puerta del Sol, el templete del ascensor de Gran vía. También los materiales audiovisuales muestran contenidos históricos en formatos digitales para potenciar la experiencia de visitante.
Esta es una ocasión única para descubrir el origen de Metro y la trasformación que supuso para Madrid.
Una visita a los orígenes de Metro de Madrid de la mano de su creador, Antonio Palacios
Marked since childhood
Antonio Palacios, born in Porriño, Pontevedra, grew up amidst construction sites, immersed in blueprints, tools, iron and granite.
His early exposure to the sketches of bridges, carts and tunnels from the Portuguese railways, where his father worked as a public works assistant, influenced him profoundly, as did his frequent visits to the granite quarries in Atios and Budiño, owned by his maternal family.
This left an indelible mark on him and his vision of architecture. When faced with the choice of becoming an engineer or an architect, legend has it that a coin toss decided his fate, leading him to become Madrid’s most iconic and influential architect.
Painter before architect
Antonio Palacios is widely known for his monumental and distinctive architectural works, but there’s a less familiar aspect to him: his role as a drawer and painter, creator of a plethora of watercolours, paintings and sketches.
Many of these pieces are fieldworks related to his architecture, but they also reflect rural and urban landscapes. Indeed, before embarking on his architectural studies, Palacios contemplated a career in painting, attending drawing classes with the esteemed painter Eduardo Rosales. His talent was evident and continued to shine throughout his architectural career, especially in his natural aptitude for creating spontaneous designs.
Beyond architecture, he sketched human figures, animals, and costumbrist scenes, reflecting his deep interest in painting—a pursuit he maintained privately, as evidenced by several of his works housed in the Museum of Pontevedra, the Monastery of Poio and in various private collections.
A unique teacher
He also served as a drawing teacher at the Higher School of Arts and Industries and taught architectural detail design at the Madrid School of Architecture.
His ability to swiftly and skilfully create architectural drawings often left his students in awe. His classes were spectacular; he insisted his students draw daily to develop a natural and automatic skill in their craft. He even took some of his students on a trip to Egypt to observe the majestic Pharaonic structures.
His relatives noted that he excelled “because he lived for architecture: he fully embraced it with a poetic, literary and artistic vision. He approached it as something innate. His initial step in any project was to construct a wall, around which he would gather craftsmen, stonemasons and workers, illustrating his vision by drawing the details on the spot, in life-size scale. A pencil, chalk or charcoal was an extension of himself”.
A decisive friendship
During his years of study, Antonio Palacios not only gained academic knowledge but also made a lifelong friend and long-term business partner: Joaquín Otamendi.
Together, they collaborated on Palacios’s initial major architectural projects, including the Telecommunications Palace, the Caryatids Palace and the Maudes Hospital. While their professional paths eventually diverged, Otamendi soon after played a pivotal role in Palacios’s career progression. This was particularly evident when the Society for the Construction of the Alfonso XIII Metropolitan was established, marking one of the era’s most ambitious projects.
Miguel Otamendi, Joaquín's brother and a prominent member of this Society, recommended his brother’s friend and partner for the project. This led to Antonio Palacios being named the chief architect of the Madrid Metro.
White as a solution
In all of Antonio Palacios’s Metro constructions, particular attention, as noted by Susana Olivares, should be given to the stations’ bright, white tiles. This design choice was deliberately made to counteract any feelings of claustrophobia, suffocation or anxiety that people at the time might have felt when going underground, especially given that the lighting intensity back then was not as strong as it is today. Also for this reason, the stations were built relatively close to the surface, and many of their halls featured skylights.
Palacios, a unique and incomparable traveller
In some of his writings and project memoirs, Antonio Palacios recounts his travels through France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Hungary, Greece, Egypt and others, highlighting his frequent visits to England.
His vivid creative persona, enriched by his eclectic education, enabled him to blend or gather inspirations from a range of sources. This led to the creation of a distinctive, diverse and complex body of work that challenges conventional classifications. His legacy is unique and irreplaceable.
His humble end
He was known for his remarkable generosity, often undertaking projects without charge. The mere enthusiasm of those who commissioned the work sometimes determined whether he would ask for payment.
Despite his prominent stature and significant achievements, he was notably humble. This humility was evident in his later years, which saw a transition from a time of glory to near obscurity. He spent his final years living in a studio, in a tiny space. A modest construction he had built on Carretera de El Plantío, where his life came to an end.
Antonio Palacios was the architect behind several of Madrid's most emblematic buildings.
El Mapa de Palacios
Antonio Palacios in detail
Steel and glass structures, a prevalence of verticality, simple finishes, the incorporation of ceramics and white tiles in decor... Palacios consistently employed these elements in the majority of his designs. Over time, these features came to be recognised as the hallmarks of the architect’s work.
Imágenes
Estructuras de acero y cristal, predominio de la verticalidad, acabados sencillos, uso de la cerámica y el azulejo blanco en la decoración… Palacios introducía una serie de elementos recurrentes en la mayoría de los espacios que proyectaba. Estos acabaron por convertirse en seña de identidad de los trabajos del arquitecto.
How much do you know about Antonio Palacios?
A walk through the history of Antonio Palacios, where we will see his works and his legacy in the city of Madrid.
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