SANTIAGO CALATRAVA
SANTIAGO CALATRAVA’s architectural vision has won him a place in the pantheon of great architects. Trained as an architect, engineer and artist Calatrava has created a form of architecture that mirrors his background in unexpected ways. In this documentary series on the architect and his buildings, Mr. Calatrava talks about art, architecture, engineering, Gaudi, Louis Kahn, his travels as a young man and the influences he embraced.
ABOUT THE FILMS
Santiago Calatrava was interviewed in his studio/home on Manhattan’s Upper East Side by Daniel S. Levy of People Magazine. The filming was in support of the documentary on the World Trade Center Transportation Hub a multiyear $2.2 billion project spearheaded by Mr. Calatrava.
ART INTO ARCHITECTURE explores Calatrava’s unique background and his observation that “Architecture is like our clothing only a little bit more distant”. The architect explains that the entire built environment, including roads, bridges, bedrooms, lecture halls, gymnasiums etc. all form our experience of architecture. We travel through this landscape our entire lives while rarely noticing the extent to which it has been designed and built.
GAUDI, KAHN AND THEIR INFLUENCE reveals Santiago Calatrava’s discovery of the work of groundbreaking architects Kahn and Gaudi. The architect speaks of the transformation he experienced on his own path to creating buildings stamped with his personal style. Gaudi’s engineering skills elicit special mention from Calatrava as he explains how an architects development can be influenced by others.
ARCHITECTURE WITHOUT ARCHITECTS Santiago Calatrava speaks about his discovery of architecture and how it began to attract him as a young man. He recounts the fist time he began to notice doors, windows, handrails and vernacular architecture. Calatrava’s understanding quickly grew to profound realizations about how architecture interacts with daily life.
CHOOSING ROLE MODELS
Calatrava speaks of great masters from various fields and how they had an influence on forming his ideas and appreciation of art and architecture. His narrative contains an implicit lesson on how architects can gain by exposure to a wide variety of experiences and intellectual exposure.