IGNACIO VICENS
In this second practice I am going to talk about an important Spanish architect, Ignacio Vicens. He is titled as professor emeritus of projects at the Higher University of Architecture of Madrid ETSAM. He started studying laws but after 3 years studying it he discovered hs passion for architecture finishing his studies in 1976.

He has an architect studio with his ex student Jose Antonio Ramos since 1984. His works include the building of the Faculty of Communication of the University of Navarra of the Churches of Rivas-Vaciamadrid and Ponferrada, and the headquarters of Santa Lucia company in the Plaza de España in Madrid. In 2004 he was the one in charge of preparing the Cathedral of the Almudena for the wedding of the Prince Felipe and Letizia.

In his buildings predominate the familiar houses such as “Las casas Blancas mediterráneas” in Ibiza and Almeria or in Cortesin, Malaga, The house of the brick in El Machecón, The oxidate house in Madrid, the house of Stone in ”Las Encinas”…

Throughout these years, the work of Vicens studio has been transmited through conferences, book publications and national magazines. Actually there are various luxury housing projects, such as housing blocks in Cancun and different villas in Madrid and Marbella.

Books

Magazines:

His opinion about architecture; ”THE ONLY MEANING OF ARCHITECTURE IS THE HAPPINESS OF THE USER. ARCHITECTURE MUST GIVE THE BEST TO THE SOCIETY”

I personally agree this statement. As we talked during the firsts days of universty, Architecture is a lotof things: an art, a lifestyle… but also is a Service and this is not subjective. our mission as architects is to construct, build up every building, house or space for people to enjoy the activity they are going to do inside this building. If I build a house I will do gthe best I can in order to the family who buys the house to be happy. Or if I make a building for a bussines, I will make it with the most facilities i can in order to help their job. For this reasons I believe, as Ignacio Vicens that THE ONLY MEANING OF ARCITECTURE IS THE HAPPINESS OF THE USER.

Secondly, I will talk about the second part of the statement of Vicens, which is that Architecture must give the best to the society. I definitely believe the same as Vicens but I think that everuone must give the best they can, dosent mind if it is an architect or a teacher or a doctor… If a doctor do not give the best he can, probably the pacient wont recover or maybe will die. Or if a techaer does not give the best she can, probably their pupils wont be as clevers or wont have as much knowledge as the could have had and they will have a worse academic future. The same happens with architects. If we do not give the best we can I am sure that buildings wont be as secure, as solids, as beutiful as they could be and we would be failing our society. I am sure that if everyone gives a 100% at their jobs, our society can be much better than it is now. So I can say that I also agree this second statement

Bibliography:

For having all this information I have found information in different places:

-Firstly, the information about Vicens I have found (Magazines, books, awards, buildings made) is thanks to the Vicens architectral studio page which shares with Ramos. It is called Vicens & Ramos.

-Secondly other information as the statement given I have found it in a diary called “El diario de Córdoba”

REFLEXIONS FROM THE TEXT ”QUIERO SER ARQUITECTO”

I personally have been very interested as I was reading the text. It is curious, how now, after reading it, I am quite proud of studying architecture. Being architect, as Alberto Campo Baeza says it is a vocation, it is not just for a person who doesnt know what to study or for persons who doesnt want to work hard. As time passes I am discovering my vocation , I am discovery how incredible Architecture is. Since I was little without knowing it, I am fan of architecture. Those moments when I was more innocent is when Architecture was calling my door. For example: I remember when I was little, probably with 10 years, I went to Prague with my family and I started to draw the Cathedral at night in the hotel. After some years, I think when I had 13, we travelled to London, and the same. At the hotel during night I started to draw the Big Ben and the Buckinham Palace. I made different draws during that travel and the last night I left them on the table of the room thanking the personal of the hotel.

At that moment, I had never thought about being Architect. For me, that was not an option, I just wanted to be futbolist and play for Valencia c.f. And many years passed until an idea came.

After finishing 3rd ESO, I reached to the conclusion that I wanted to be an engineer, dosent matter about what, I was focused on being engineer and that was my objective. I do not really know why I had that idea but it was not a solid idea. During my first year of Bachelor I was very confused and fortunately my school made an activity where proffesionals of different jobs came to the school and explained what about the subject was and made some activities.

Fortunately, all the explanations and activities about all subjects were very boring for me. All of them unless one. And that one, of course was Architecture. From that moment I started to think about studying architecture and i started to draw on the table during the Filosphy classes that were very boring for me. And thanks God I study hard during the second curse of Bachelor and despite a fright during the PAU, I finally entered to the degree I loved during all my life without knowing it.

I like a lot when the author write about six different masters of the subject. It is very important to know about the different architect celebrities or just know the good architects and know their different capacities, what they dislike, what they like… It is also very important to be grateful. I think the autor is grateful as after having his own degree, after having an extensed professional career he has talked about his teachers during his university stage remembering the people from who has learned. I hope after finishing my degree and I start working I cloud remember and have a nice relationship with them.

At the beggining of the text, the author says that he do not pretend us to encourage us to study architecture but I have to admit that if I wanted to study this subject before reading the text, after reading it I am more interested in being an architect and facing this 5 years with a lot of entuthiasm.