Churrigueresque (/ˌtʃʊərɪɡəˈrɛsk/;Spanish:Churrigueresco), also but less commonly "Ultra Baroque", refers to aSpanish Baroque style of elaborate sculpturalarchitectural ornament which emerged as a manner ofstucco decoration inSpain in the late 17th century and was used until about 1750, marked by extreme, expressive and florid decorative detailing, normally found above the entrance on the main façade of a building.
Named after the architect and sculptor,José Benito de Churriguera (1665–1725), who was born inMadrid and who worked primarily in Madrid andSalamanca, the origins of the style are said to go back to an architect and sculptor namedAlonso Cano, who designed the façade of thecathedral at Granada, in 1667.
A distant, early 15th century precursor of the highly elaborate Churrigueresque style can be found in the LombardCharterhouse of Pavia.[citation needed]
The development of the style passed through three phases. Between 1680 and 1720, the Churriguera popularizedGuarino Guarini's blend ofSolomonic columns andcomposite order, known as "supreme order". Between 1720 and 1760, the Churrigueresque column, orestipite, in the shape of an inverted cone or obelisk, was established as a central element of ornamental decoration. The years from 1760 to 1780 saw a gradual shift of interest away from twisted movement and excessive ornamentation towardsneoclassical balance and sobriety.
Among the highlights of the style, interiors of theGranada Charterhouse offer some of the most impressive combinations of space and light in 18th-century Europe. Integrating sculpture and architecture even more radically,Narciso Tomé achieved strikingchiaroscuro effects in hisTransparente for theToledo Cathedral. Perhaps the most visually intoxicating form of the style was Mexican Churrigueresque, practiced in the mid-18th century byLorenzo Rodriguez, whose masterpiece is theSagrario Metropolitano (1749–69) inMexico City,New Spain.
The first of the Churriguera wasJosé Benito de Churriguera (1665–1725), who trained as a joiner ofaltarpieces, drawing some very important for various churches ofSalamanca,Madrid,Valladolid and other cities in Spain. Some in Spain have gone and some remain only a sites:
InMexico, theCathedral Basilica of Zacatecas, capital ofZacatecas state, and theTemplo de Santa Prisca, located inTaxco,Guerrero state are considered as masterpieces of Churrigueresque style. The building ofParroquia Antigua inSalamanca, Guanajuato, founded on August 24, 1603, was completed in the year 1690, and the Churrigueresque façade in 1740. The altarpiece of the church of San Francisco Javier (National Museum of Viceroyalty) inTepotzotlán,State of Mexico is also considered, along with its façade, one of the most important baroque churrigueresque works created by theJesuits inNew Spain. TheAltar de los Reyes of theMexico City Metropolitan Cathedral and the façades of the Sagrario Metropolitano, by the Spanish architect Lorenzo Rodriguez, which is attached to the same Cathedral, are also representatives of the style.
California Churrigueresque[1][2] is arevival style native toCalifornia, developed in the early 20th century by architectsBertram Goodhue andCarleton Winslow Sr. for the1915 Panama–California Exposition, which helped popularize its use inSpanish Colonial Revival architecture in California, and to a lesser extent the rest of the United States. Goodhue and Winslow developed the style after studying Churrigueresque andPlateresque ornamentation inSpanish Colonial buildings in Mexico.
Many of the best examples of California Churrigeresque are located inBalboa Park inSan Diego, the site of the Panama–California Exposition. Other notable buildings in this style include San Francisco'sMission Dolores Basilica andMission High School, theFirst Congregational Church of Riverside, Los Angeles'sSt. Vincent de Paul Church andMillion Dollar Theatre, as well as[3]Beverly Hills City Hall.[4] TheGolden Gate Theater inEast Los Angeles is another example.
TheHollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District contains severalcontributing properties with Churrigueresque in their design, including thePalace,El Capitan, andWarner theatres;Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel; and theBaine,Cherokee,Herman,Hollywood Studio,Pickwick Book Shop,Pig 'n Whistle, andWax Museum buildings.[5]
