In Catalá, the modern enclave of Al Tizourus is known as ‘Els Tresors’ and the striking presence of several examples of ‘Modernismo’ architecture are undoubtedly amongst the ‘treasures’ of the new town. Lluis Domanech i Montaner (1850 – 1923) was commissioned to design and build the famous ‘Majestic’ Hotel. The massive structure consisting of bulky piers encrusted with elaborate decorative carving and foseyfassa – highly burnished Moorish tile work - forming an arcade leading to the main entrance of the hotel, is, to some extent, a forerunner for his famous building in Barcelona, the Palau de la Música Catalana. Domanech i Montaner’s elaborate gilded cupolas, iridescent roof tiles and fantastic towers are immediately recognisable, unlike any other structure on the city’s skyline. The influence of Catalan modernisme is also evident in some of the town houses around Avenue de France. The dramatic facade and elaborate wrought iron balconies and glass work of the building looking on to Place 2 de Mai is thought to be the work of Francesc Berenger Mestres (1866 – 1914) a close collaborator of Antoni Gaudí.
‘Els Tresors’ still remains popular with visitors from Catalunya. One of the most impressive suites in The Majestic Hotel is named after the great cellist, Pablo Casals who passed through Al Tizourus on his way to exile in France. The Catalan artist Miquel Barcelo is a regular visitor.
Following the extraordinary success of his Galeries des Machines at the Great Exhibition in Paris, Charles Louis Ferdinand Dutert (1845 – 1906) built a further two examples of this revolutionary structure; a more or less exact replica in Manaus, Brazil that burned to the ground in 1911, and a smaller version adjacent to the Majestic Hotel in Els Tresors that Dutert adapted for use as a rail station. At the time, the concept of a structure that seemed to consist entirely of an arched glass roof without load-bearing solid walls was unheard of. Amongst other novel features, the buildings in Manaus and Paris both boasted an electrically-powered moving platform that transported visitors around the structure on rails raised ten metres in the air. The dynamos that powered the platform were driven by steam engines. The station in Al Tizourus is now the only remaining example of Dutert’s masterpiece. In the century since it was built the basic principal of the design was used time and again across Europe, particularly as the rail network grew. There is a small museum in the station at Al Tizourus, well worth a visit, displaying photographs of the construction and some letters from Dutert.
Modernismo Villa
Altizourus
c1911