Rehabilitation of the Hacienda Su Eminencia
Sevilla
Architects
Sol89. María González y Juanjo López de la Cruz
Technical Architect
Víctor Baztán y José Ramón Carmona
Client
Particular
Construction Company
Sanor S.A., Geocisa (micropilotes) y Escuela-Taller (gañanía)
Photography
Sol89
The project proposes the rehabilitation of the complex known as Hacienda Su Eminencia. The site consists of two distinct buildings: on one side, the country house of Cardinal Francisco de Solís, built in 1764 by Valencian and Catalan craftsmen who were working on churches and chapels in Seville at the time. It is a simple structure with brick walls and vaulted ceilings, except for the service wings, which are supported by lintels. On the other side, there are the buildings typical of an olive grove estate, heavily altered over time, although traces of the working patios and the lord’s residence can still be recognized. The entire complex had been abandoned since 1992, having been inhabited until then by successive tenants from Seville’s aristocracy following various land redistributions. In 2001, we first visited the Hacienda de Su Eminencia; the intervention aimed to restore these listed buildings, which were in a state of ruin, to serve as the headquarters of a Foundation and an educational center. After reinforcing the walls of Cardinal Solís’s palace, the building was cleaned, much like erasing with an eraser—removing more than adding. The building was stripped down, leaving only the walls and vaults, offering a true lesson in brick anatomy. Opposite it, the white architecture of the gañanía (olive mill) was restored as a place for work and teaching, organized around the working patio, which was reconfigured by inserting two new workshops that reestablished its original layout.
