Stella Maris Convent

A rectangle measuring 14.30 by 33.40 metres with three façades and a party wall, for a complex programme: an absolutely open-plan church occupying the entire surface area, and a convent for Discalced Carmelite friars. Obviously, the church had to be located at the same level as the Alameda promenade; this meant that the convent had to be built on top of it on three floors, the first for communal areas, the second for the cloister and the third for the cells,’ is how the architect García de Paredes himself described the conditions of this project. Un rectángulo de 14,30 por 33,40 metros con tres fachadas y una medianería, para un programa complejo: una iglesia absolutamente diáfana que ocupara la totalidad de la superficie, y un convento de frailes carmelitas descalzos. Evidentemente, era obligado situar la iglesia a nivel con el paseo de la Alameda; esta condición implicaba superponer el convento sobre ella en tres plantas, la primera para los ambientes comunitarios, la segunda para el claustro y la tercera para las celdas», con estas palabras describe el propio arquitecto García de Paredes las condiciones de este proyecto. Various sources attest that he took into account at all times the urban conditions of the city centre in which the work was being carried out. In a letter to Father Plácido de Santa Teresa, he firmly defended his elevations as being the exact translation of the building's internal meaning to the outside world, stating: ‘Not only do I believe that this building will not clash with the Alameda, but that it will fit in perfectly, and you can rest assured that it will “look” like a church.’ This sensitivity to the environment, in its discreet and quiet character, has been seen as one of the constants in García de Paredes' work. Diferentes fuentes atestiguan que tuvo en todo momento en cuenta las condiciones urbanísticas del centro de la ciudad en el que se insertaba la obra.