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The Project
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Construction Stages
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The Architects
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Surroundings
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Building
The Project
The building of the Royal Collections Gallery was designed with two premises: to form part of the natural-artificial landscape of Madrid's western cornice and to maintain the public and open nature of the Plaza de la Almudena.
It is a building that is invisible from the terrace between the cathedral and the Royal Palace. It stands vertically and builds a linear space towards the Campo del Moro, following the outline of the Royal Palace, and blending in perfectly with its surroundings.
It is a wholly contemporary work, plain and simple, but, at the same time, it is an architectural masterpiece. It supports the cornice of Madrid with an immense retaining wall. Its façade is made up of reinforced concrete pillars covered with granite slabs on the outer surface. It has a striking interior, thanks toits spaciousness, natural light and views of the surrounding landscape.
The building has a surface area of more than 40,000 m2, of which 8,000 m2 will be for public use. Its three exhibition halls are large open-plan rooms 120 metres long and 16 metres wide, with a succession of concrete porticoes. In addition to all necessary spaces and services for visitors' comfort and enjoyment, the building has suitable spaces for the management and conservation of the cultural assets it houses: storerooms equipped with high-capacity furniture, a bay for receiving artworks and a multi-purpose hall for preventive conservation.
As of today, he has already received ten important architectural awards, including the first prize of the Professional Association of Architects of Madrid (COAM 2016), the FAD architecture award in 2017 and the American Architecture Prize (AAP 2017).
Construction Stages
The works, which began in December 2006, were carried out in four phases and were completed in December 2015.
First Stage
2006 - 2009
After the archaeological excavation, the works began with the construction of a retaining pile wall 45 m high, supported at the top by reinforced concrete beams. Once the wall was completed, the soil was extracted in layers, securing it with temporary anchors until the foundation level was reached. Finally, a reinforced concrete wall was built in front of the piles to form buttresses on the main front of the retaining wall.
Second Stage
2008 - 2011
This stage consisted of the foundation and execution of the building structure. Firstly, the reinforced concrete foundation slab was made and then the structure of walls, slabs, beams and pillars of white concrete was built.
Third Stage
2011 - 2013
Once the structure was completed, the enclosing sections were built. These works consisted of the construction of the roofs and terraces, including the formation of slopes, thermal insulation, waterproofing and finishes, and the structure of the façades was lined with large pieces of granite.
Finally, the façades were completed with the installation of doors, made of oak wood with aluminium plating on the outside, and windows, made of lacquered steel.
Fourth Stage
2014 - 2015
This last stage involved completing the interior finishes, as well as building the partitions for offices, locker rooms, storerooms, and other areas of the Gallery. All air-conditioning, electrical fittings, telecommunications and plumbing necessary for the correct functioning of the building were also installed at this stage.
The Architects
Emilio Tuñón álvarez
Luis Moreno Mansilla
Emilio Tuñón Álvarez (1959) graduated as an architect from the Madrid School of Architecture (E.T.S.A.M) in 1981, was awarded a PhD in Architecture in 2000, and from 2016, he has been Full Professor of Architectural Projects at the same institution. He is the recipient of the Spanish government’s 2014 Gold Medal for Merit in Fine Arts, the 2007 Mies van der Rohe Award, the 2007 European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture, the 2003 Spanish National Architecture Award and the 2001, 2007 and 2011 FAD Awards. In 2018 he was awarded the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) International Fellowship 2018. His professional career has been acknowledged with the 2022 National Architecture Award.
Together with Luis Moreno Mansilla, he founded the Mansilla + Tuñón Arquitectos studio, which has been awarded numerous public tenders and is responsible for some of the most iconic buildings in contemporary Spanish architecture. Of especial note are their projects for cultural institutions such as:
- The Museum of Zamora (1992-1996). Cultural Centre of Belem, Architecti Award (1996)
- El Águila complex, current headquarters of the Archive and Regional Library of the Community of Madrid. 1996- 2002 COAM Award for Architecture, Public and Corporate Works (2003)
- The Auditorium of León. 1996.2002. Spanish Architecture Award (2003).
- The Museum of Castellón 1997-2000. FAD Award (2001)
- The Museum of Contemporary Art of Castilla y León (MUSAC) 2001-2004. Enor Castilla y León Award (2005). Enor Grand Prize (2005), VIA Award (2006). Mies Van der Rohe Award (2007).
- Barrié Foundation Headquarters, Vigo. 2003-2006. Saloni Award (2007). FAD Award (2007)
- Helga de Alvear Foundation Headquarters, Cáceres 2005-2010
- Museum of Contemporary Art, Helga de Alvear, Cáceres 2014-2020
In 1993, Emilio Tuñón, Luis Moreno Mansilla and Luis Rojo founded the CIRCO research cooperative which also publishes a journal of the same name, and has received the III Biennial Award for Ibero-American Architecture and Engineering, the C.O.A.M Award, and the special 2007 FAD Critics Award. His designs and articles have been published in numerous national and international journals and his work has been featured in numerous monographs, including those published by the magazine AV Proyectos 65 in 2014 and the magazine El Croquis 161 in 2012.
Surroundings
The Royal Palace of Madrid
The Royal Palace is located on the site of the former Alcázar of Madrid, a medieval fort converted into a palace and which was made the official residence of the Spanish monarchs by Philip II from 1561 onwards. On the night of Christmas in 1734, the Alcazár was destroyed in a fire.
In order to build the new Palace, Philip V commissioned the best European architect of those times, namely, Filippo Juvarra. However, he did not live to see his work completed. It was his pupil, Giambattista Sacchetti, who took on the responsibility of adapting his ambitious design. The entire building was designed with vaults without wood in the structure, to ensure that a large part of the Palace would survive in the event of another fire, and with numerous floors so that all government offices, the offices of the Royal Household, and the servants could be housed there. It was a building designed to house absolute power.
Construction began in 1738 and would not be completed until 1751, although the sculptural decoration of the surrounding area and the “outdoor works” continued until 1759, under the direction of Sacchetti, who supervised the entire project from start to finish. However, his design was altered by Francesco Sabatini, architect to Charles III, the first monarch to live in the Royal Palace, where he settled in 1764.
Construction began in 1738 and would not be completed until 1751, although the sculptural decoration of the surrounding area and the “outdoor works” continued until 1759, under the direction of Sacchetti, who supervised the entire project from start to finish. However, his design was altered by Francesco Sabatini, architect to Charles III, the first monarch to live in the Royal Palace, where he settled in 1764.
Under Charles III, the Royal Palace of Madrid experienced its greatest decorative splendour with the arrival of the most famous painters of the time: the Venetian artist Giambattista Tiepolo, and the German painter Anton Raphael Mengs, who had studied in Rome and would become its first chamber painter.
Campo del Moro
Popularly known as “Campo del Moro” or the Moor’s Field, it is the Park located next to the Palace, built by Philip II when the Alcazar had been completed, and the Spanish Court was established in Madrid. During the construction of the Royal Palace in the 18th century, various plans were designed for its gardens. Joseph Bonaparte was especially fond of this park –since he could not travel to the Royal Sites- and commissioned Juan de Villanueva to landscape the garden with tree-lined avenues and connect it to Casa de Campo by means of a tunnel and bridge, the latter built by Isidro González Velázquez under Ferdinand VII.
Although it had fallen into disrepair and neglect during the period termed the Sexenio Revolucionario (Six Years of Revolution), the queen regent Maria Christina of Austria subsequently charged Ramón Oliva with its landscaping, and this style with curved walkways is today’s historic garden, albeit with slight modifications after the Spanish Civil War. It is one of Madrid’s most special corners and the ideal place in which to end a visit to the Gallery.
