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Josep Lluís Sert i López (; 1 July 190215 March 1983) was a Catalan architect and
city planner An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, tow ...
established in the USA after 1939.


Biography

Born in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
,
Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...
, Spain, Sert showed keen interest in the works of his uncle, the painter Josep Maria Sert, and of
Antoni Gaudí Antoni Gaudí i Cornet ( , ; ; 25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926) was a Catalans, Catalan architect and designer from Spain, widely known as the greatest exponent of Catalan ''Modernisme''. Gaudí's works have a style, with most located in Barc ...
. He studied architecture at the Escola Superior d'Arquitectura in Barcelona and set up his own studio in 1929. That same year Sert moved to Paris, in response to an invitation from
Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , ; ), was a Swiss-French architectural designer, painter, urban planner and writer, who was one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture ...
to work for him (without payment). Returning to Barcelona in 1930, he continued his practice there until 1937. During the 1930s, Sert co-founded the group GATCPAC (''Grup d'Artistes i Tècnics Catalans per al Progrés de l'Arquitectura Contemporània'', i.e. Group of Catalan Artists and Technicians for the Progress of Contemporary Architecture), which later was the prominent association, with the addition of the western and north groups, of the GATEPAC (Grupo de Artistas y Técnicos Españoles para el Progreso de l'Arquitectura Contemporánea), which was in turn the Spanish branch of the '' Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne'' (CIAM). Sometime later, Sert became President of CIAM (1947–1956). He created several outstanding pieces of modern architecture during this period, such as the week-end house in El Garraf, Catalonia (1935), the Central Dispensary of Barcelona (1935) and the Master Plan for the City of Barcelona (1933–1935). From 1937 through 1939, Sert lived in Paris, where he designed the Spanish Republic's pavilion at the Paris Exposition of 1937. For the artistic content of the building, Sert called on his artist friends
Pablo Picasso Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, Ceramic art, ceramicist, and Scenic ...
,
Joan Miró Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , ; ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan Spanish painter, sculptor and Ceramic art, ceramist. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona ...
, and
Alexander Calder Alexander "Sandy" Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobile (sculpture), mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, hi ...
. Picasso's contribution was '' Guernica'', which became the focal attraction of Sert's design.


Career in the United States

After the fascist forces of
Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (born Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco Bahamonde; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general and dictator who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces i ...
won the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
in 1939, Sert, like most members of GATCPAC, was disqualified from practising as an architect in Spain, and went into exile in the United States, where he lived until Franco's death, when he returned to Barcelona. In his first years in New York City he worked with the Town Planning Associates, carrying out numerous urban plans for cities in South America. In 1952, Sert held a one-year Visiting Professorship at
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
. The following year he became Dean of the
Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urba ...
(1953–1969). There, Sert initiated the world's first degree program in
urban design Urban design is an approach to the design of buildings and the spaces between them that focuses on specific design processes and outcomes based on geographical location. In addition to designing and shaping the physical features of towns, city, ...
; integrated the programs of architecture, planning, landscape and urban design, and taught many of today's leading architects. During this period, he served on the Advisory Board of the newly created Graham Foundation in Chicago, Illinois. In 1955, Sert founded a studio in
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...
which in 1958 became a partnership with Huson Jackson and Ronald Gourley. Joseph Zalewski was the Associate and continued to be in the firm Sert, Jackson and Associates founded in 1963. The studio designed many well-known projects including the Maeght Foundation (1959–1964) in southern France, the Fundació Miró (museum) in Barcelona (1975) and quite a few buildings for
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, including Holyoke Center (1958–1965), the Harvard Science Center (1969–1972),
Peabody Terrace Peabody Terrace, on the north bank of the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a Harvard University housing complex primarily serving graduate students, particularly married students and their families. Designed in the Brutalist archi ...
(apartments, 1962–1964), and the Center for the Study of World Religions at the
Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the religious studies, academic study of religion or for leadership role ...
. Among other notable buildings in the vicinity are a complex at
Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...
including its
law school A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
, student union, and main library (1960–1965), Sert's home in Cambridge, as well as the Martin Luther King elementary school (1968–1971), located across from Peabody Terrace. In New York, he completed the Eastwood and Westview apartments on
Roosevelt Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the Borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. It is about long, wit ...
, NYC (1976). In 1961, Sert brought
Le Corbusier Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , ; ), was a Swiss-French architectural designer, painter, urban planner and writer, who was one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture ...
to the United States to design the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at
Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...
, and a gallery in the Carpenter Center is now named in Sert's honor. In 1981, he received the
AIA Gold Medal The AIA Gold Medal is awarded by the American Institute of Architects conferred "by the national AIA Board of Directors in recognition of a significant body of work of lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture." It is the Ins ...
.


The art world

Josep Lluis Sert counted amongst his close friends the likes of
Alexander Calder Alexander "Sandy" Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobile (sculpture), mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, hi ...
,
Joan Miró Joan Miró i Ferrà ( , ; ; 20 April 1893 – 25 December 1983) was a Catalan Spanish painter, sculptor and Ceramic art, ceramist. A museum dedicated to his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, was established in his native city of Barcelona ...
,
Georges Braque Georges Braque ( ; ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his alliance with ...
, and
Marc Chagall Marc Chagall (born Moishe Shagal; – 28 March 1985) was a Russian and French artist. An early modernism, modernist, he was associated with the School of Paris, École de Paris, as well as several major art movement, artistic styles and created ...
, for whom he designed studios and homes. He brought art into the Harvard curriculum through his commissioning of the Carpenter Center and his subsequent avid support for it. His design for the Fondation Maeght in
Saint-Paul-de-Vence Saint-Paul-de-Vence (, literally ''Saint-Paul of Vence''; ; ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. One of the oldest medieval towns on the French Riviera, Saint-Pau ...
, France, the
Fundació Joan Miró The Fundació Joan Miró ( ; English: Joan Miró Foundation, Centre of Studies of Contemporary Art) is a modern art museum honoring the life and work of the Spanish artist Joan Miró, located on the hill called Montjuïc in Barcelona, Catalonia ( ...
in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
and the Museum School were more than an architect-client relationship, they were partnerships in the discovery of modern art. Among Sert's students and colleagues in his studio were leading and past master architects from the United States, Spain, France, Bolivia and Brazil, Venezuela, as well as Dolf Schnebli of Switzerland,
Fumihiko Maki was a Japanese architect. In 1993, he received the Pritzker Prize for his work, which often explores pioneering uses of new materials and fuses the cultures of east and west. Maki died on 6 June 2024, at the age of 95. Early life Maki was born ...
of Japan, and Christopher Charles Benninger of India.


Major buildings and projects

* 1930–1931: Apartment Building at 342 Muntaner Street, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1933–1934: Joieria J. Roca (currently, Boutique Rolex) at 18, Passeig de Gràcia, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1934: Ciutat de Repòs i de Vacances, project, along the Garraf coast south of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1933–1935: Dispensari Antituberculós, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1932–1936: Casa Bloc, apartment building, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1937: Pavilion of the Spanish Republic,
Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne The ''Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne'' (International Exposition of Art and Technology in Modern Life) was held from 25 May to 25 November 1937 in Paris, France. Both the Palais de Chaillot, housing the Mu ...
,
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
Rebuilt in 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain * 1955: Joan Miró studio ( Fundació Pilar i Joan Miró),
Palma, Majorca Palma (, ; ), also known as Palma de Mallorca (officially between 1983 and 1988, 2006–2008, and 2012–2016), is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is situated on the south coast of M ...
, Spain * 1955-1958:
Havana Plan Piloto The Havana Plan Piloto was a 1955–1958 urban proposal by Town Planning Associates, which included Paul Lester Wiener, Paul Schulz, the Catalan architect Josep Lluis Sert, and Seely Stevenson of Value & Knecht, Consulting Engineers, seeking t ...
, Havana Cuba. * 1955–1961: Embassy of the United States, Baghdad, Iraq (abandoned 1990) * 1957: Sert's home at 64 Francis Avenue,
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...
* 1958–1960: Center for the Study of World Religions,
Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the religious studies, academic study of religion or for leadership role ...
, Cambridge, Massachusetts * 1958–1965: Holyoke Center (Now) Smith Campus Center,
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, Cambridge, Massachusetts * 1965:
Peabody Terrace Peabody Terrace, on the north bank of the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a Harvard University housing complex primarily serving graduate students, particularly married students and their families. Designed in the Brutalist archi ...
,
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, Cambridge, Massachusetts * 1959–1964: Fondation Maeght in Saint-Paul de Vence, France * 1964: The Can Pep Simó Estate in Jesús,
Ibiza Ibiza (; ; ; #Names and pronunciation, see below) or Iviza is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of th ...
. * 1969: Hotel at Cala d'en Serra,
Ibiza Ibiza (; ; ; #Names and pronunciation, see below) or Iviza is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of th ...
, Spain (abandoned) * 1969: Eastwood and Westview apartment complexes, Roosevelt Island, New York * 1971: Carmel de la Paix in Mazille (
Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is B ...
), France * 1973: Harvard Science Center, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts * 1975:
Fundació Joan Miró The Fundació Joan Miró ( ; English: Joan Miró Foundation, Centre of Studies of Contemporary Art) is a modern art museum honoring the life and work of the Spanish artist Joan Miró, located on the hill called Montjuïc in Barcelona, Catalonia ( ...
, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain


Bibliography

* Mumford, Eric (2015) ''The Writings of Lluis Sert'', 184 pages, Yale University Press, English; * Mumford, Eric, and Sarkis, Eric editors (2008) Harvard University Graduate School of Design: ''Josep Lluis Sert: The Architect of Urban Design 1953–1969''; Yale University Press, English; * VV.AA., ''4 Centenarios: Luis Barragán, Marcel Breuer, Ärne Jacobsen, José Luis Sert'', (4 volúmenes), Valladolid, Spain, , 2002, Universidad de Valladolid
Página Web
* Rovira, Josep M. (2000, Spanish); Saavedra, Leonara (2004, English translation): ''Jose Luis Sert 1901-1983'' (Modern Masters) Electra Milano, distributed by Phaidon Press; . * Tyrwhitt, J., Sert, J.L., Rogers, E.N., Gropius, W., Neutra, R., Sweeney, J.L., Steinberg, S., et al. editors (1952) CIAM 8: ''The Heart of the City: Towards the Humanization of Human Life''. 185 pages; Lund Humphries; ASIN:B00170PZDO


References


External links



* ttps://hollisarchives.lib.harvard.edu/repositories/7/resources/726 Josep Lluis Sert Collection DES-1982-0003-000603276. Frances Loeb Library, Harvard University.
Josep Lluís Sert Archive
Fundació Joan Miró. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sert, Josep Lluis Architects from Catalonia Urban planners from Catalonia Modernist architects 1902 births 1983 deaths Congrès International d'Architecture Moderne members Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in the United States Harvard Graduate School of Design faculty People from Ibiza 20th-century Spanish architects Honorary members of the Royal Academy Recipients of the AIA Gold Medal