Biographie
Calatrava grew up in Valencia. He attended school there until 1968. He then attended the Art School in Valencia from 1968 to 1969. From 1969 Calatrava studied architecture at the Escuela Tecnica Superior de Arquitectura in Valencia. He completed his training in 1974. This was followed by studying civil engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich from 1975 to 1979. Calatrava then received his doctorate there. Ing., in order to then teach as a lecturer in technical sciences at the architecture department at ETH Zurich. In 1981 he opened his own architectural and engineering office in Zurich. Through his training, Calatrava combines the design and technical areas. Calatrava is a widely honored architect who has received numerous awards and honorary doctorates. In 1985 he became a member of the Association of Swiss Architects (BSA).
In the same year he was presented with the Auguste Perret Prize by the Union Internationale d'Architectures in Paris. He took part in the 17th Milan Biennale in 1985. The city of Barcelona awarded him the municipal art prize for planning the Bach de Roda-Felipe II bridge in Barcelona. In Valencia, Calatrava was honored with the Premio de la Asociación de la Prensa. Also in 1985 he received the IABSE Prize from the Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering. In Spain he won the FAD prize. Calatrava was presented with the Fritz Schumacher Prize in Hamburg in 1985. And in the same year he became an honorary member of the Association of German Architects (BDA). In 1990, the Foundation Académie d'Architecture in Paris honored him with the Médaille d'Argent de la Recherche et de la Technique. In 1991 Calatrava received the European Glulam Award in Munich. In the same year he received the City of Zurich Award for good buildings for planning the Stadelhofen train station in Zurich.
In 1992, Calatrava was awarded the GEOE Foundation's Dragados y Construcciones Prize for the Alamillo Bridge. This year he became a member of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Carlos in Valencia and the European Academy in Cologne. In London, the Spanish architect was awarded the gold medal from the Institute of Structural Engineers. The city of Zurich also honored him with the Brunel Award for the Stadelhof train station in Zurich. Calatrava became an honorary member of the Royal Institute of British Architects in London in 1993. The Polytechnic University of Valencia awarded him an honorary doctorate. In Madrid, the Fundacion Gercia Cabrerizo presented him with the Medalla Honor al Fomento de la Invencion. In Toronto he accepted the City of Toronto Urban Design Award. In 1994 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters in Environmental Studies at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh. The Scottish Royal Incorporation of Architects made him a Fellow Honoris Causae.
Calatrava became an honorary member of the Colegio de Arquitectos of Mexico City. In 1999 he received honorary doctorates from the Italian University Stugi di Cassino and the Swedish Lund University. That year he also received the Asturias Award for Arts. He became an honorary member of the Spanish Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernado and a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences. In addition, Santiago Calatrava exhibited in international museums, exhibition halls and galleries. His bridge constructions, in which the dynamic forms as well as the support systems vary again and again, attract particular attention. The award-winning Alamillo Bridge in Seville, which was completed in 1992, should be mentioned here. Its forms appeal more to the emotionality of viewers and users than to their reason. Calatrava always strives to expand and mutually open the boundaries of architecture, engineering and art. He wrote a book about his creative process entitled: "Santiago Calatrava's Creative Process".
His projects include the Lyon-Satolas TGV train station (1989-1994), the Lucerne train station (1984-1989), the Spandau train station in Berlin (1990), the "Estacao Oriente" train station in Lisbon, the Bilbao Airport Terminal, the Milwaukee Art Museum, the Puerto Madero pedestrian bridge, the Blackhall Place bridge in Ireland, the Ernstings warehouse in Coesfeld, the Guillemins Thalys train station in Belgium, the concert hall and exhibition center in Tenerife and, in 2004, the library of the university's law institute Zurich.
