Abstract
In the transition from the Middle Ages to the Modern Era, Hernan Ruiz I worked as master builder of the Cathedral of Cordoba. His works exemplify the adoption of an artistic language resulting from the symbiosis of Gothic, Renaissance and Islamic formulas. In this paper, we demonstrate the imprint of the Andalusi aesthetic in this master’s work. Through an analysis of his building works and the evolution of his style, we show that Hernan Ruiz I’s legacy is more important than what historiography has previously suggested, which has only addressed the transition in his architectural style from Gothic to Renaissance and has overlooked the impact of Andalusi formulas in his work. Hernan Ruiz I bore witness to an important change in the mentality and aesthetic tastes of his time, and although his son, Hernan Ruiz II, gained greater recognition for his work, his father was able to adapt a church model imbued with the medieval spirit to the demands of the new patrons, namely the nobility and high clergy. These clients imposed their tastes, which were anchored in the past, but were open to new Renaissance influences due to their humanistic training and, at the same time, attracted by the exoticism and prestige of Andalusi art.
Highlights
At the turn of the fifteenth to the sixteenth century, marked by the transition from the MiddleAges to the Modern Era, the master architect Hernan Ruiz I, known as the Elder (1479?–1547), was active in the city of Cordoba, Spain
This article aims to contextualize his building works with a view to understanding the important role he played in the passage from medieval to modern architecture, and how the Andalusian influence (Islamic tradition in the ancient al-Andalus) endured in his work through the use of certain elements that merged with other elements of Christian origin
We do not intend to carry out an in-depth analysis here, but rather to undertake a task we owe to this master, and which historiography has tended to overlook, attracted more by the brilliance of his descendants
Summary
At the turn of the fifteenth to the sixteenth century, marked by the transition from the Middle. The powerful image of the Mosque of Cordoba defined the following constructions inside it, such as, for instance, the Royal Chapel (Ruiz Souza 2006), which resulted from the great exchange of cultures His homonymous son, Hernan Ruiz II the Younger, is much more well known, mainly due to his treatise on architecture, his successful intervention in the Giralda bell tower of the Seville Cathedral and other outstanding works. We do not intend to carry out an in-depth analysis here, but rather to undertake a task we owe to this master, and which historiography has tended to overlook, attracted more by the brilliance of his descendants In their classic study of Hernan Ruiz II the Younger (Banda y Vargas 1974), A. de la Banda y Vargas provided some biographical data on Hernan Ruiz I and briefly mentioned some historical and artistic aspects of this master’s works. Some argue that this trend ended in the sixteenth century, we have strong evidence that it continued until the eighteenth century, and that by the nineteenth century Islamic architectural elements were revived and reinterpreted and survive even today, with workshops recovering drawings, techniques and materials or seeking inspiration in existing ones to give birth to new creations
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