The Hipódromo de la Zarzuela has been declared as a cultural interest asset
16 October 2009 |
It represents one of the architectural masterpieces of 20th century Madrid. Its authors were Carlos Arniches, Martín Domínguez, and Eduardo Torroja.
The Council of Ministers has approved a Royal Decree by which the La Zarzuela horse racetrack of Madrid has been declared a Cultural Interest Asset.
This horse racetrack, which is attached to the state agency Patrimonio Nacional, is regarded as one of Madrid¿s 20th century architectural masterpieces, since it meant a significant progress in structural terms, as well as with regard to the type of building materials used in its construction.
The project of the Architects Carlos Arniches and Martín Domínguez, and of the Engineer Eduardo Torroja won the competition which had been organized to that end in 1934, and work began a year later. It is part of the so-called ¿organic¿ school in Architecture. Engineering plays the key role in the project, and the stands, with their wide projecting roofs made up of cement laminar vaults, stand out from the remaining facilities.
Special mention must be made to the work carried out by Eduardo Torroja, who succeeded in fitting the facilities into the surrounding natural environment and in integrating the different parts which make up the horse racetracks, while at the same time meeting the functional requirements. This is the work for which he is internationally best known, and it constitutes a relevant avant-garde case of technological research on new building materials.