RENAISSANCE IN SPAIN

Spanish design posses unusual formality, dignity ,strength and vigor ,no matter if is lavishly ornamented or just plain. It was influenced by vast character of Spanish own region and foreign art and design, particularly Italian, the French and Moors from North Africa.  We have seen 

Italian renaissance design progress from early days in the revival of classic design to more sophisticated efforts, then to complexities of the baroque and then to renewed Neoclassicism. The Spanish parallel is more complex ,moving back and forth between very ornate and very plain styles.
Art and design was influence by religion.Two words grate religions- Islam and Christianity dominated the history of Spain and history is full of struggles between them .Christianity was mostly dominate by Roman Catholicism and it ceremonies,events ,design and art. On other hand Islamic faith was complete with their rich design but forbidding to use human figure and other natural form of art. Some design was geometric with multiply of small motifs in flat patterns; Some as the greatest mosques the one at Cordoba was monumental.

                                                        

Mosque at Cordoba is 390 by 600 feet ( 120x185m) the larger even that St.Peter's basilica in Rome and is one of these building that exterior appear to be very ordinary and not prepare for its interior where is seeming infinity of marble pillars supporting arches made of red brick and pale yellow limestone. Building is under three domes. The central and larges dome futures intersecting arches that form an eight pointed star with surfaces faced in gold mosaics.

"Imagine a forest, and imagine that you are in the depths of this forest. and that you can see nothing but the trunks of the trees. Thus, no matter on what side of the mosque you look ,the eyes sees nothing but the columns. It is a limitless forest of marble. ..."   Edmondo de Amicis. ( 1846-1908)

Another great building is palace The Alhambra ,Granada. Started to be build in 1309 and finished in 1354 ,constructed by the Moors. As we can see below interiors walls are covered with fantastic colored ornamental details many times enriched by decorative inscriptions stating that "there is no God but Allah"
example: Cathedral of Toledo carved in plateresco style by Gregorio Pardo in 1549.
 Monastery of Escorial - library .Ceiling fresco represent the seven liberal arts.

We have said that Spanish design can be plain or ornamental. Moors -excellent mathematicians looked to geometry  for pattern inspiration and develop extraordinary originality; squares and rectangular were usually avoided but stars, crescents, crosses, hexagons, octagons were used and as in Midlde East the arabesque and other plantlike ornaments were also used.A specialty was decor Yeseria ,a wall surface covered with plaster ornament and delicately tinted in various colors.

Spanish furniture: rooms were furniture as elsewhere in Europe : stools, benches, folding seats ,chair of honor,canopied beds, simple desks, occasional sideboards and cabinets with drawers.
The Spanish term for side chair is silla for armchair sillon. Silla del Renecimiento means chair of Renaissance. The favorite chair was modeled on Itally's co-called Dante chair. or X chair. The best known Spanish chair was frailero."monk chair".
Spanish and Portugal design obviously is very important part of European design but Spain has been overshadowed by Italy and France, despite the fact that Spain design was larger and deeper. Morish design surpassed anything what was produced anything in Europe. Additionally whole Central and South America and part of India were under Spanish and Portuguese control and influence their design, therefore Spanish design is the most important element of world design.