The (Catalan for 'National Palace') is a building on the hill of Montjuïc in Barcelona. It was the main site of the 1929 International Exhibition. It was designed by Eugenio Cendoya and Enric Catà under the supervision of Pere Domènech i Roura.Roig (1995) p. 199 Since 1934 it has been home to the National Art Museum of Catalonia.
With a ground surface of 32,000 m2, the Spanish Renaissance-inspired building has a rectangular floor plan flanked by two side and one rear square sections, with an elliptical dome in the centre. The fountains by the staircases leading to the palace are the work of Carles Buïgas.
Between 1996 and 2004, the palace was extended to accommodate the National Art Museum's entire collection of over 5,000 artworks.
First projects of the Palau Nacional
Ahead of the 1929 International Exhibition, Barcelona had already commenced urbanizing parts of Montjuïc. From the second half of the 19th century, projects were presented regarding the installation of public facilities in the area. Up until this time, Montjuïc had only been used for its resources: pockets of private properties and numerous quarries. The lack of roadways made it area difficult to access, however.
A project by Ildefons Cerdà and another by Josep Amargós in 1894 proposed to convert the mountain into a residential area. A similar later plan was Léon Jaussely's 1905 Pla d'Enllaços. Another idea for the celebration of the exhibition in Montjuïc was proposed in 1909 when Manuel Vega i March suggested that the culminating point of the development should be 'a great Temple of Art, a summary and compendium of our most prodigious knowledge'."" Finally, in 1913, it was decided that Montjuïc would be the definite location for the Exhibition of Electric Industries (Exposició d'Indústries Electriques), promoted by the industry and the city council of Barcelona.
The initial plan proposed by architect Josep Puig i Cadafalch in 1915 was basic in design, depicting a large central avenue crowned by a rectangular palace with a great dome, the top of which had a statue of a winged Victory surrounded by eight towers. In 1920, the same architect designed a detailed project named (Palace of Ancient Art), which later became known as (Palace of the Nations). In order to construct the dome, a system was conceived to include a combination of a concrete and geodesic dome structure. The construction of this design began in 1923. However, in September of the same year, the arrival of General Miguel Primo de Rivera to power brought on the dismissal of Puig i Cadafalch from his position as president of the Commonwealth of Catalonia and his subsequent distancing from the Exhibition project.
The distancing of Puig i Cadafalch from the project was not only for political reasons, but financial ones as well. In a document titled Advancement of the Budget of the Exhibition, the budget valued the Palace at 8,080,000 pesetas. Another reason for the new organizational committee to avoid Puig i Cadafalch's continuation was the transfer of the contract from the construction company to another company , contradicting the statement of conditions previously agreed. As a result, the new committee decided to suspend the construction works of the palace.
Competition of 1924 On 18 July 1924 the engineer Marià Rubió i Bellver, member of the organization and lawyer of J.M. Almirall Carbó, launched a competition of projects. The participation was open to all Spanish architects, who could present an individual project or one together with the proposal of a construction company. It was the latter option that gave way to the final winner. Ten projects in total were presented. That of José María Martín was rejected, as it was considered outside of the scope of the project. The nine successful entries were made public in January 1925:
Benet Guitart i Trulls: The architect with the longest standing qualification, he proposed a structure made of iron that was based on an Islamic style of architecture. Juan Brugera Rogent: An architect from Madrid who presented a purely neoclassical design, with the main façade consisting of a Corinthian colonnade and a dome 65 meters in diameter. Salvador Soteras i Taberner: This project suggested a palace where the ground floor could not be seen from Plaça Espanya. The structure was reduced to a minimum; however it did include a dome and two towers. The architect received an honorable mention, although almost posthumously, as he died in the spring of 1925. Rafael Bergamín, Luis Blanco Soler and Ricardo García Guereta: Three architects belonging to the school of Madrid, their project was one that deviated from the earlier design by Puig i Cadafalch. Classical in style, it presented a façade of columns and a pediment and was the only proposal which did not suggest a dome or towers. The project also included a rear façade which included a sculpture realized by Victorio Macho. Eduardo Fernández Díaz: The design was one of a neoclassical style with a central cupola. Eugenio Cendoya and Enric Catà: The winning project (see below for more details). Nicolau Maria Rubió i Tudurí, Ramon Reventós and Francesc Folguera: Their design attempted to harmonize with the palaces constructed by Puig i Cadafalch. Curiously, this project and that of Eduardo Fernandez were the only ones which did not feature in the magazine Arquitectura, which published the results of the competition and their illustrations. Ramon Térmens Mauri: One of the most disparate projects presented in relation to that designed by Puig i Cadafalch, it proposed the main façade be on the street of the stadium instead of facing Plaça Espanya. The Great Hall has a cruciform plan, with large vaults and a central dome. Jaume Santomà and Mariano Romaní: The youngest architects of all the entries. Romaní was said to have not yet completed his architectural studies at the time. Their proposal was clearly based on that of Puig i Cadafalch, but with easier construction solutions. They received second prize.
The winning proposal was that of Eugenio Cendoya and Enric Catà, with honorable mentions given to Salvador Soteras and Santomà i Romaní. The president of the presiding jury was the then-mayor of Barcelona, Darius Rumeu i Freixa. The winning project also included the collaboration of the constructor Antoni Montseny, and in some publications, the name Pere Domènech i Roura appears, who was already the general manager of construction of the Exhibition.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 20
Executive project
During 1925 the competition, winners made the implementation plan of their project. One of the most important factors was the guarantee of development of the work in a given timeframe. A mechanism to bring the construction time forward was found in the rationalization of architectonic elements; searching for repetition that would serve to save time during the building process. Three materials served to be most important during the construction; concrete, artificial stone and iron. According to the architects themselves, the artificial stone, manufactured on-site, is T-shaped in order to provide a good grip on the wall structures between which they are applied. A norm was presented by which all walls and framework were to be realized in concrete and the lost formwork in artificial stone, incorporating the visible decoration. The flat roofs were constructed using a system of reinforced concrete and coffering, which formed the final decoration. As a result, the interior comprises iron housing, filled with concrete to one side, and the other treated with decorative plaster work. For the lobby, stairs and basement, the so-called 'Catalan Vault' was used, consisting of flat-laid brick work. Amongst the pieces of artificial stone made on-site are sixteen columns supporting the dome, each of one meter in diameter and ten in height, and hollow in structure. Each column is made from a singular piece of artificial stone. The structure of the Great Hall measures 46 x 74 meters with a height of 70 meters. On 30 June 1926 the first stone of the construction was placed, an occasion marked by diverse authorities including the president of the executive committee of the Exhibition, Mariano de Foronda, the mayor of Barcelona Darius Rumeu i Freixa, and the director of construction Pere Domènech i Roura.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 110
Architecture
The design of the National Palace is a unified style of Spanish Renaissance architecture with an air of academic classicism.
It is the result of different functional forms and construction procedures, resolved by a technical language attributed to the Barcelona School of Architecture.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 25 The construction of the Palace consists of the combination of traditional systems based on symmetry, as clearly outlined in its composition and, that of the building procedure dominated by more modern techniques and materials such as the use of concrete.
The building has two floors: one base or ground floor and another main floor which holds double pilasters, marking the great blind wall panels. At the north-eastern part of the structure lies a subterranean space, which at the moment of construction was destined for the installation of kitchens. There was also a set of rooms constructed: the Throne Room, rooms for the King and Queen and, to the front of the building, the museum section. To the back of the building an area for events was created, with a small tea room or restaurant, located in the body of space which stands behind the Great Hall.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 24 The façade consists of a central body flanked by two smaller side ones. The center topped by a large dome reminiscent of that of St Paul's Cathedral in London or that of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, with two smaller domes on each side. At the four angles corresponding to those of the Great Hall stand four towers that resemble those of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela or the Giralda of Seville.
Interior decoration The architectural project not only included architectural decoration such as columns, pediments and moldings but also considered such interior decoration as murals and sculptures. The ornamentation of the interior spaces depended on the organizational committee who resulted in giving the amount of 1,200,000 pesetas towards its realization. Responsible for the project management was Louis Plenduira, curator of the Fine Arts Exhibition. The work commenced in winter of 1928, leaving the artists three months to carry out their pieces. The style of the art work produced belongs to that of which prevailed in Catalonia at the time namely the noucentisme style, which is found especially in the decoration of the main dome and the domes under the Throne Room, the Great Hall and the Tea Room.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 26
The neo-Renaissance architecture contrasts with its 20th-century decoration by sculptors Enric Casanoves, Josep Dunyach, Federic Marès and Josep Llimona, and painters Francesc d'Ássís Galí, Josep de Togores, Manuel Humbert, Josep Obiols i Palau, Joan Colom i Augustí and Francesc Labarta.
The Great Hall Beyond the lobby is the Great Hall (), or Oval Room (). Due to its large dimensions, it was conceived as a space for the hosting of great events; from the official ceremony to the inauguration of the Exhibition, as well as concerts, balls, galas and conferences.Barral i Altet (1996) p. 22 The hall is 2,300 m2 and has standing room for 1,300 people.Barral i Altet (1992) p. 41 The Oval Room hosted the opening ceremony of the Exhibition, presided by Alfonso XIII and Queen Victoria Eugenie.BOE of 27/1/1995