Casa Coderch, the little-known villa of Catalan modernism

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Casa Coderch, the little-known villa of Catalan modernism

José Antonio Coderch was undoubtedly the pioneer figure of post-war architecture in Spain. It was at the end of the 1930s that the young Catalan architect established his reputation. While the country was under Franco’s regime and advocated a rationalist and monumental architecture, Coderch joined forces with other architects to modernize the discipline. His installation in Barcelona allowed him to open up to the Mediterranean and to the artistic avant-gardes that were being established throughout Europe.

Influenced by the work of Italian architect Gio Ponti, Coderch quickly developed his own language. Private building commissions poured in and the architect established himself as the symbol of architectural modernity. Casa Coderch is surely the culmination of his ideas and his most personal project. Built in 1972, the house was commissioned by his sister to accommodate her family. In the heights of the village of Sant Feliu de Codines, not far from Barcelona, the villa, entirely made of red brick, stands elegantly between pine trees and valleys. A harmony between nature and human construction which, from the moment you enter the residence, calls for peace and quiet. Designed as a total work, the interior reflects the architectural structure. Since its construction, the spatial arrangement has remained as Coderch had thought. Bright and minimalist, simply punctuated by furniture made of natural materials imagined by the architect. Casa Coderch embodies the ideas proclaimed by the Catalan. An architecture resolutely turned towards the European modernity and yet anchored in the Mediterranean culture, that of his Catalan region. Today maintained by his nephew, the house has recently opened its doors to the delight of visitors and travelers looking for a unique stay in modernist architecture.