Exhibition by Luis Gutiérrez Soto on the 125th anniversary of his birth

The exhibition entitled Luis Gutiérrez Soto and his mark on Madrid architecture celebrates the 125th anniversary of the architect’s birth through an urban exhibition that can be visited in El Retiro Park. This event is part of the architecture week celebrations organized by the COAM Foundation, the Official Association of Architects of Madrid, and the City Council of the capital. This year, Portugal was the guest country, so Gutiérrez Soto shared the spotlight with Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza.

Luis Gutiérrez Soto (Madrid, 1900-1977) is one of the leading representatives of the rationalist movement in Spain and is responsible for such iconic buildings as the Barceló and Callao cinemas, the legendary Bar Chicote, the La Unión and El Fénix buildings, and the Defense Staff building, among many others. According to the Official College of Architects of Madrid, the purpose of this exhibition is to raise awareness of his architecture in today’s society, which is why it has been decided to install it in a public space and showcase his work through “highly graphic” panels that display and document a total of 14 buildings selected “from among his vast body of work.” The exhibition, they continue, “aims to raise awareness and inform about the quality and heritage value it possesses.”

As part of the prolific residential architectural work, the exhibition organizers have chosen homes such as those located in María de Molina, those built for the Miguel Ángel real estate agency, the Torre del Retiro, the houses built by Constructora Pedreña, and those built by Inmobiliaria Padilla y Almagro.

Those interested in the career of this famous architect can scan a QR code that redirects them to the Madrid Architecture app, which provides access to images and plans of the buildings, with the option of switching to English so that tourists can also learn about Gutiérrez Soto’s work.

In addition, the lecture given by Professor Miguel Ángel Baldellou on Gutiérrez Soto can be viewed at this link.

The usual workshops for Madrid secondary school students organized during the Week to spark interest among our young people focus this year on the figure of Gutiérrez Soto, and his legacy will be the subject of several of this year’s urban itineraries, which can be viewed here.

This link provides detailed information on all the buildings designed by or in which Gutiérrez Soto participated, organized by name and date.

Written by: Beatriz Fabián

Beatriz is a journalist specializing in offline and online editorial content on design, architecture, interior design, art, gastronomy, and lifestyle.