One of the three members of MBM, a fundamental practice in 20th-century Spanish architecture, died in Barcelona at 92. The son of a prestigious educator, Josep Maria Martorell was born in the Catalan capital in 1925, attended the Institut Escola – where he met, along with David Mackay, his lifetime professional partner, Oriol Bohigas –, graduated from the city’s architecture school, and was part of the mythical Grupo R before founding MBM and launching a long architectural career which he combined with writing and occasional government posts. A political progressive and a music lover, Martorell played a leading role in Barcelona’s Olympic Village, where as director of architecture and urban planning he demonstrated great sensitivity for the city as well as huge gifts as a designer and builder.