Santiago Calatrava (1951)
Santiago Calatrava was born 1951 in Benimament, where he pursued undergraduated studies at the Architecture School and Arts and Crafts School. Following graduation in 1975, he enrolled in the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich, Switzerland for graduate work in civil engineering. In 1981, after completing his doctoral thesis, he started his architecture and engineering practice. He is an internationally known and award-winning Spanish architect, sculptor and structural engineer and has his principal office is in Zurich, Switzerland, with offices in Paris and New York. Calatrava's early career was dedicated largely to bridges and train stations. His elegant and daring Montjuic Communications Tower in Barcelona, Spain in the middle of the 1992 Olympic site was a turning point in his career, leading to a wide range of commissions. The Quadracci Pavilion of the Milwaukee Art Museum was his first US building. Calatrava’s entry into high-rise design began with an innovative twisting tower, called Turning Torso in Malmö, Sweden.
He is 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.
Awards for Santiago Calatrava
- August Perret Award, 1979
- London Institution of Structural Engineers Gold Medal, 1992
- Toronto Municipality Urban Design Award, 1993
- Gold Medal for Excellence in the Fine Arts from the Granada Ministry of Culture, 1996
- Prince of Asturias Award in Arts, 1999
- Algur H. Meadows Award for Excellence in the Arts from the Meadows School of the Arts, Southern Methodist University, 2000
- Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts from the Council for the Arts at MIT, 2006
- Honorary Engineering Degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 2006
- AIA Gold Medal, 2005
- Designation as a Global Leader for Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum in Davos
- Awarded with the Spanish National Architecture Award, 2007
Important works by Santiago Calatrava
- Trinity Bridge, footbridge over River Irwell, Salford, England
- Oberbaumbrücke, Berlin, Germany
- Alameda Bridge and metro station, Valencia, Spain
- Jakem Steel Warehouse, Munchwilen, Switzerland
- Ernsting Warehouse, Coesfeld, Germany
- Wohlen High School, Wohlen, Switzerland
- Stadelhofen Railway Station, Zürich, Switzerland
- Lucerne Station Hall, Lucerne, Switzerland
- Bac de Roda Bridge, Barcelona, Spain
- Barenmatte Community Center, Suhr, Switzerland,
- Tabourettli Theater, Basel, Switzerland,
- BCE Place (atrium), Toronto, Canada,
- TGV Station , Lyon, France
- Puente del Alamillo, Seville, Spain
- Puente de Lusitania, Mérida, Spain
- Montjuic Communications Tower at the Olympic Ring, Barcelona, Spain
- World's Fair, Kuwaiti Pavilion, Seville, Spain
- Campo Volantin Footbridge, Bilbao, Spain
- Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, Valencia, Spain
- Estação do Oriente, Lisbon, Portugal
- Puente de la Mujer, in the Puerto Madero barrio of Buenos Aires, Argentina
- New terminal at Bilbao Airport, Bilbao, Spain
- Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
- James Joyce Bridge, bridge over River Liffey, Dublin, Ireland
- Auditorio de Tenerife, the architect’s first performing arts facility, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
- Redesign of Athens Olympic Sports Complex, Athens, Greece
- Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay, Redding, California, USA
- Three bridges, Netherlands
- University of Zurich, library remodelling, Zürich, Switzerland
- The bridge connecting the Ovnat shopping mall and the Rabin Medical Center
- , Israel
- Turning Torso, Malmö, Sweden
- 3 Bridges on the A1 Motorway and TAV Railway, Reggio Emilia, Italy
- Chords Bridge at the entrance to Jerusalem, Israel, a light rail bridge
