Sueca Nursing Home
| Sueca Nursing Home | |
|---|---|
Asilo de ancianos de Sueca | |
| File:Sueca - Asil d'ancians 06.jpg | |
| Lua error in Module:Infobox_mapframe at line 118: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Valencian Art Nouveau, Neo-Mudéjar |
| Location | Sueca (Valencia)  Spain |
| Address | Avda. del Mar n.º 2, Sueca |
| Completed | 1911 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Buenaventura Ferrando Castells |
The Sueca Nursing Home (Valencia, Spain) located on avenida del Mar número 2, is a Neo-Mudéjar and Valencian Art Nouveau style residential complex built in the year 1919 according to the plans of suecan architect Buenaventura Ferrando Castells.
It is made up of a combination of buildings, erected by decision of executors Antonio Baldoví Beltrán and Teresa Cardona Burguera, and was under construction from 1911 until 1919. They are located on the outskirts of Sueca, separted from the city center by the Silla a Cullera railway line, which constitutes the southern border. During construction, the building appeared isolated on the outside of town next to the small suburb La Canal, decontextualized from the expansion of the city, bordered to the north by a railway line.[1]
Denomination
The building is known as the Baldoví y Cardona Family Home, Home for the Destitute Elderly, and commonly, as Asil dels Agüelets o dels Abuelets. In the Suecan General Urbanization Plan it is officially listed as the Panteón-Asilo of the Baldoví-Cardona family.[2][1]
History
The Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly had managed a nursing home in the city of Sueca since 1888. Construction began on the current building at the beginning of the 20th century, with work starting in 1911 and ending in 1919.
The building was funded by the Antonio Baldoví Beltrán and Teresa Cardona Burguera marriage estate. According to their instructions, the building was also to include its own chest tomb, which was initially located in the nave of the church. During the second half of the 20th century, it was decided that the funerary monument would be moved to one of the northern courtyards as it infringed on the Eucharist celebration.
Description
The buildings have a strong presence and uniqueness, both due to their size, their location outside of the urban center, and above all, the architectural language used in their designs. A group of linear buildings are situated on a trapezoidal plot, marked by a perimeter fence, that line a complex floor plan. It consists of a layout that runs parallel to the railway lines, with five main rectangular buildings, with hipped roofs connected by transverse wings, so that all of the buildings connect, creating an elaborate spatial area in the open portions, which are used for gardens. The plans show the individual rooms conforming with nursing home standards, and as is tradition with this type of charitable building, it revolves around the chapel.
This creates a combination that fits the Neo-Mudéjar and Valencian Art Nouveau styles, from the which one can draw a connection between it and the regional architecture being developed in Catalonia, with influence from Lluís Domènech i Montaner. The boldness of the building in terms of its compositive coherence from the material used, along with the monumental character of the main buildings, reflected above all in the chapel, create a very interesting complex.
Within the compositional solution, a notable contrast of materials and shapes is achieved, based mainly in the author's skillful handling of the brickwork. The main buildings, particularly the chapel, are resolute with an abundance of ornamental shapes, which separates them from the others. The details, and in particular the broad repertoire of design solutions for openings, whose design complies with the hierarchal composition of the floor plans and the importance of the building within the complex, offer very diverse solutions: 45° pointed arches, arches with helical columns, horseshoe arches, linteled arches, and oculi in the turrets.
This formal freedom is manifested in the outer fence on the front side, that combines brick and stone, materialized in fantastic forms, also seen in the shape of the metal.
The building is currently managed by the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Elderly, and have provided a priceless humanitarian service in Sueca for many decades. The Sueca City Hall published, in the year 2000, the book Lección de soledad. Reflexiones en torno a los ancianos asilados, by Juan Vicente Yago, which makes up a literary reflection on the indispensable and invaluable service that this religious organization provides in the city. Juan Vicente Yago Martí is a Spanish writer, born in Sueca, winner of many literary prizes, like being runner-up for the Ricardo García Requena Award of journalistic articles (2004), the Recvll Journalism Award (2013), and being runner-up for the Francisco Valdés Award of journalistic articles (2015). His first book was Lección de soledad, in the which he describes his year-long experience of living with the residents of the Sueca Nursing Home.
The local radio station Sueca TV reported on the Sueca Nursing Home in the series Espais amb història, broadcasted on XI·2·2009, which reviews the history of the building, its architecture, its daily uses, and the experiences that reside within its walls.
Gallery
-
Main façade, facing west. -
Windows on the main body of the façade. -
Fence detailing -
The complex has numerous garden courtyards -
Benefactor's chest tomb.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tortosa, Paco (2011). Sueca. Paisatge, cultura i medi ambient (in catalán). Edicions 96 y Ajuntament de Sueca. ISBN 978-84-92763-61-0.CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link) Search this book on
- ↑ Ajuntament de Sueca (13 de febrero de 2013). "Pla General Municipal. Catálogo de Bienes y Espacios Protegidos" (PDF) (in español). Retrieved 19 de septiembre de 2016. Check date values in:
|access-date=, |date=(help)
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Asil d'ancians (Sueca). |
This article "Sueca Nursing Home" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Sueca Nursing Home. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
