TND West

here is no doubt that the best Valencia hotels are the cream of the cream. In this luxurious setting, with the largest coast on the western side of Spain, Valencia is a lush city with so much to offer. Port cities are often celebrated for their cosmopolitan atmosphere, because the long history of international communication and trade makes for a very hospitable and welcoming ambiance. Guests here will have more to choose from then ever imagined, with culture, food, and incredible beaches on every itinerary. Culturally, Valencia is a fascinating place.

The city has a long tradition of artistic production, and some of the most influential artists in the world have passed through here at one time or another. It is also home to the great futurist artist, Josep Renau. Born in Valencia in 1907, he studied at the School of Bellas Artes, also in Valencia, between 1919-1925. After graduating, he joined the Communist Party, the Union of Proletariat Artists and Writers, and also worked on the magazine “Nueva Cultura.” In this time, he also produced artworks that were largely strictly allied with the dictates of social propaganda, and extremely bold in graphic design, and spoke to the political movements of the time. A vehement anti-fascist, his work was in the new tradition of futurism, but not ideologically tied to their generally fascist tendencies, making him somewhat of an iconoclast. It is interesting to consider the idea of an iconoclast in an iconoclastic art movement, but it is one that many post-futurists would find very amusing.

Futurism had more or less died out long before Josep Renau started working in this artistic camp, but its legacies would continue for a long time, and are still being felt to this day. So it is no wonder that the techniques used by the futurists would be useful to a young artist with political ideas. The main thrust of their artistic argument was that the present time was one of great change, technologically and socially. For the young artists of the day to keep up, or step ahead, in a typical avant-garde maneuver, it was necessary to embrace speed. Not simply speed in duration, but in artistic process, in performance, in the creation of new work. Speed of idea would match technological speed, and the production of artists would be sudden, vibrant, and speak absolutely to their time. Josep Renau found such ideas to be very useful to his contemporary Spain, and he used them to advance his work. This great artist, who would also commission Picasso’s Guernica, died in Berlin.

The Spanish city of Valencia has long been known as the city of architecture, science, art and culture, and one of the most brilliant jewels in the crown is the L’Hemisferic. This one of the newer museums in the city, created by Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava. Calatrava is known for his innovative designs, and this one is truly a masterpiece. It is the convergence of contemporary and modern forms, of Science and Culture, all within the same walls. This structure is unique. The building is in the shape of an eye that appears to be floating, above a pond of water. The eyeball blinks from time to time, through the ingenious structuring of hydraulics. When one enters the building through the front doors, one is walking under the eyelid.

Calatrava created this symbolic image, which is the eye of learning and wisdom. This is an interesting and fantastic attraction, located conveniently close to the many Valencia hotels, and offers those traveling with children a variety of options that will intrigue and delight the minds of all ages. It is so different from some of the stuffier more old fashioned science museums, that the kids are just waiting to go and to learn, through many of the interactive displays and exhibits.

Located within L’Hemisferic there is a Museum of Science, the Omnimax Theater, an Oceanographic Center and Aquarium and the Palacio de las Artes, a very fine museum and gallery. As with all Omnimax theaters, this one is shaped like a globe, however what is fantastic about this one is that it is set inside and eyeball, with vaults, staircases and aluminum arches surrounding glass windows and panels, translucent and the eyeball seems to be at some times. And, again, the theater is equipped with state of the art projectors and sound systems. The shows offered change regularly and are always on subjects of interest to many. More travelers are visiting Valencia, with the express purpose of visiting L’Hemisferic, finding not only the building, but all that the building contains, to be quite remarkable and fantastic.