Don Juan Vicente Gutiérrez de Salamanca Fernández de Córdoba, arquitecto cordobés de los siglos XVIII y XIX

Abstract

SUMMARY In tlie second travofthe XVlll century the barroque style of architecture was still jirmly established in the old kingdom of Córdoba, especially in folk circles, whereas in tire cal~ital city of Córdoba itsev and in some of the small villages that had been influenced by the Age of Enlightenment, neoclassicism was beginning to take root. One of tlrese srtclr places was the village of Aguilar de la Frontera, where Don Juan Vicente Gutiérrez de Salamanca was it'orking as an architect. Related by marriage to important noble families, and himse!f a rich landowner, he embodied the learned prototype o!' ttrat era with his manfest interest for agriculture and other works of ljublic benefit, especially architecture. He had dedicared himself to the latter since his youth, and before reaching the age of thirty he had already ~lanned the construction of tire Clock Tonper, in a typically baroque style. However, from thisjiowery architectural style he eventually evolved into a strict neoclassicist, no doubt due to his being a learned man, as various different noble families from the above mentioned village have testified. Nevertheless his crowning work is that of the Plaza de San José (St. Joseph's Square) whictr. possibly inspired by that of Archidona, constitutes one of the finest examples of an octagonal square closed off in accordance whith the French influences that were fashionable in Spain al that time.