JJ Merelo

Elisa Valero, who is a professor at the university of Granada, has received the “Female architect of the year” award from anotHERVIEWture, an Austrian organization. www.anotherviewture.at/award/2026/w... She was the first woman to get the Swiss Architectural prize a few years ago…

The simplicity as seen from outside reveals a very careful design of lighting; she maintains that “Architecture is sculpting light” and orientation, openings to the beach (meters away) and even the cross-shaped tower slots show he’s probably one of the best living architects nowadays.

Elisa Valero, who is a professor at the university of Granada, has received the “Female architect of the year” award from anotHERVIEWture, an Austrian organization. www.anotherviewture.at/award/2026/w... She was the first woman to get the Swiss Architectural prize a few years ago…

Today we pulled over at Dúrcal, a small town between Granada and the beach. The main church, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, was indeed interesting, with a lively mass going on. Many Manierist and Baroque sculptures; among them, this one of San Ramón Nonato (the “unborn”, non-natus).

He’s got the palm frond of the victory/martyrdom, although he didn’t die of his wounds; he was also a supporter of the Eucharist, which explains the eucharistic holder in his left hand. He was kept as a slave in the 13th century in Africa, and that explains the last iconographic attribute

We just finished the chapter on Old Testament iconography, and I have been checking the 300+ pictures I took at the Pinacoteca di Brera and I haven’t found a single obvious one. This one looked promising, but there’s none in this altarpiece by Mantegna dedicated to Saint Luke

Probably this Gothic style was popular when Mantegna got the commission, a hodgepodge of not so easily identifiable saints… Not because iconography is not an exact science, but because it changes with time. For instance, this guy that’s so dressed up is actually Saint Sebastian.

In our iconography class today, we have run through a laundry list of prophets, kings, and all Old Testament characters, including this one. From the get go we were told that we were going to see examples of the Western tradition, but regarding iconography, how can you not look at actual icons?

The Quattro Canti, piazza Villena or Teatro del Sole is one of the flagship places in Palermo. It’s called Villena because of the Spanish count that was the vicerrey (designated governor) of Italy at the time. These Four Corners were built by the Spaniards at the beginning of the 17th century

The decoration is in fact a sandwich of Sicilian and Spanish kings, with them in the middle. Lower stage, rivers in Palermo; second, Habsburg kings of Spain, 3rd, the saints patrons of Palermo: Saint Agatha, Ninfa, Oliva and Cristina. Here’s Charles V, for instance, with the 2nd floor Ionic columns

I guess most people goes to Taormina because it’s hip, the upscale chopping or because they’ve watched it in the second season of White Lotus, but it’s in fact a rather interesting medieval town, as week here in this building, which is in the corner between the two main thoroughfares in the city.

A Frankenchurch, San’Agata in Carcere, which reuses the main gate of the old Normal cathedral, which the characteristic Romanesque arches, and puts it in a Baroque screen with Serlian windows, obviously from much later. Inside, a dark dungeon where Sant’Agata purportedly spent her last days.

One of the oldest parts in the Normal palace in Palermo is this so-called Pisan Tower was the donjon of the castle, that is, the stronghold and last reduct to where defenders should go for a last-ditch defense. It still bears some resemblance to a Islamic Qubba, more than the usual belfry

Palermo shows a time span of architecture that goes from the early XI century to the contemporary, with everything in between. Check this early Gothic church, if I’m not wrong from the Anjou period, showing the rose windows introduced in Saint Denis, the powerful pointed arches, the wavy arches

Today we continued with our collection of iconographic themes and started with Medieval themes such as this one, which is actually called “Seat of mercy” and is an anonymous 16th century canvas at the Bonnefanten museum in Maastricht. It’s unequivocally the Holy trinity: Father, Holy Ghost and son

The Father wears the “trirregno”, the papal tiara that has the three crowns and that projects the Pope as representative of God in the Earth. The Holy Ghost is, well, ghosted, but that might have not been the intention of the painter, but aligns with the head of Jesus Christ.

Our study of iconography is starting with paleo-Christian symbols. This is the mausoleum of Gala Placidia (which is probably neither, but has passed to history as such) in Ravenna, Italy, totally covered with 5th-century mosaics linked to the latest Roman “emperors”, who had their capital there

But what drew me back to this specific picture was this representation of doves drinking in a fountain, which represent baptism, or Christians drinking from the fountain of faith. It’s a repurposing of a common topos in Roman mosaics to represent a Christian ideal without giving up too much.

Our study of iconography is starting with paleo-Christian symbols. This is the mausoleum of Gala Placidia (which is probably neither, but has passed to history as such) in Ravenna, Italy, totally covered with 5th-century mosaics linked to the latest Roman “emperors”, who had their capital there

Today we celebrate the Hispanity day, which means different things for different people. But here’s the thing, it’s celebrated also by Hispano-American communities all over Spain and there as the day of “Hispanidad y Mestizaje”, a word that I’m not going to translate because it can’t be translated

And is, quite notoriously, a cornucopia, a horn of abundance. The instrument (horn) used to call across the Andes met the symbol of abundance coming from the Grecorroman culture, and used by Irene (or Peace), Ceres (agriculture) and Diva Augusta (Abundance through peace)

Today we celebrate the Hispanity day, which means different things for different people. But here’s the thing, it’s celebrated also by Hispano-American communities all over Spain and there as the day of “Hispanidad y Mestizaje”, a word that I’m not going to translate because it can’t be translated