Francesc Mitjans

At the age of 96, just a few months before his death, the Catalan architect was given the XII Antonio Camuñas Award in one of his most representative buildings, the Royal Nautical Club (1958). Founded in 1985, this prize is awarded every two years to a Spanish architect whose career has been distinguished by the establishment of an innovative and singular voice. Past winners of this award include Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza, Alejandro de la Sota and Miguel Fisac. Although the Camp Nou, done in collaboration with Josep Maria Soteras, is perhaps his most well-known work, Mitjans best articulated his sober and elegant style – notably influenced by the Modern Movement – in the realm of domestic architecture, a style that, as explained in the jury’s ruling, rejected the spectacular and favored the “the search for real solutions to concrete problems”. The residential buildings designed for Barcelona’s bourgeoisie in the city’s well-to-do neighborhoods, such as the apartament complex Seida, the building on Amigó street with its unique running terrace, summarize the professional trajectory of a rationalist author.