Imagine newspapers fluttering down from this very building. This is the Palacio de la Prensa. It stands tall on Gran Vía.
The Palacio de la Prensa is more than bricks. It represents Madrid’s press history. It also showcases early 20th-century architecture.
Commissioned by the Madrid Press Association, its design started in 1924. Pedro Muguruza designed it. The building intended to be multi-use. It included apartments, offices, a movie theatre, and a concert hall. Construction began in 1925. It finished by 1929. The Palacio de la Prensa officially opened in 1930.
Notice the building’s three distinct sections. They reflect its varied functions. The southern tower has 16 floors. It rises to 58 meters.
Initially named Casa de la Prensa, it soon became Palacio de la Prensa. Its style features modern classicism. King Alfonso XIII inaugurated the Palacio de la Prensa.
The Palacio de la Prensa cost eight million pesetas. It provided space facing the Plaza del Callao. The building housed a café concert and a cinema. There were also rental apartments and offices. Muguruza was influenced by López Otero and Antonio Palacios.
The Gran Vía construction spanned almost twenty years. The Palacio de la Prensa sits between the second and third sections. A cinema opened in the basement in 1929. It screened The Way of All Flesh. It held 1840 seats. Sometimes it functioned as a theatre. Patrons reached seating via an elevator.
In 1941 architect Enrique López-Izquierdo designed a street-level patio. This eased crowding. The cinema became a multi-screen complex in 1991. The Salón de té Madrigal opened in its lower levels in the forties.
The humor magazine La Codorniz had offices here. Edgar Neville filmed his first movie here. It was called Yo quiero que me lleven a Hollywood. From 2009 to 2015, the Socialist Party of Madrid occupied floors here.
The Palacio de la Prensa became a Bien de Interés Patrimonial in 2017. This is a recognition of its cultural value.
The building extensively uses brick. Its exterior shows influence from American architecture. Louis Sullivan’s Chicago building is a key inspiration. The interior evokes Spanish architectural decoration. The façade facing Callao Plaza features a grand arch. The Cines Palacio de la Prensa are at the base.
Once Madrid’s tallest building, Palacio de la Prensa is an icon. It mixes journalism history with architectural innovation. It is a lasting landmark on Madrid’s Gran Vía.