MUSEUM OF ART NOUVEAU AND ART DÉCO. CASA LIS

The Casa de Lis is considered the most outstanding modernist work in Salamanca. This urban mansion, built on a section of the old city wall, was commissioned by Miguel de Lis (1855-1909), an industrialist who became prosperous thanks to the modernization of the tannery factory he had inherited from his father. His good economic situation allowed him to undertake the construction of a residence in line with the new architectural trends of the late 19th century.

The project was entrusted to Joaquín de Vargas y Aguirre (1857-1935), an architect from Jerez who had arrived in Salamanca to fill the position of provincial architect. Both he and Miguel de Lis were aware of the innovations of European modernism, especially that which was developing in Belgium, which decisively influenced the design of the building.

Miguel de Lis's stay in the house was brief: he died in 1909, just three years after its inauguration. The property remained in his family's hands until 1917, when it was acquired by Enrique Esperabé de Arteaga (1869-1966), future rector of the University of Salamanca, who settled there with his family. Later, the house passed through different tenants and, by the 1970s, it was closed and unused, beginning a period of deterioration that put its survival at risk. In 1981, the Salamanca City Council initiated an expropriation process to prevent its ruin. Although it was initially intended to be converted into a cultural center, the donation of Manuel Ramos Andrade's valuable collection steered the project towards the creation of the Art Nouveau and Art Déco Museum.

To adapt the building to its new function, the Casa Lis underwent a profound rehabilitation carried out by architects Javier Gómez Riesco and Francisco Morón. Stained glass windows made by master glazier Juan Villaplana were incorporated, among them the spectacular polychrome stained glass window covering the central patio, composed of more than two thousand pieces of glass and designed by Ramos Andrade himself.

The museum opened its doors in 1995 and is managed by the Ramos Andrade Foundation, whose board includes the city councils of Salamanca and Navasfrías, as well as the University of Salamanca.

The building as the first collection Even before entering the rooms, the modernist building itself is already part of the museum. The iron and glass structure, the stained-glass windows, and the adaptation to the unevenness of the terrain serve as an introduction to Art Nouveau and Art Deco: light, transparency, and decoration as the main language. The access leads to the large patio covered by the upper stained-glass window, one of the central points of the visit.

Through its nineteen collections, the tour through its rooms shows the visitor the production of European decorative arts workshops from the Nouveau and Deco periods:

Porcelains and enamels The visit begins with highly refined European porcelains and decorative enamels. These are pieces from French and Central European manufacturers, with floral decoration, feminine scenes, and symbolic motifs typical of modernist taste: porcelains by Rosenthal, Royal Copenhagen, Mariano Benlliure, Gustave Guetant or Zuloaga.

Viennese Bronzes Small decorative sculptures produced by workshops such as Franz Xaver Bergmann's, with orientalist scenes, animals, and gallant figures, highly appreciated by bourgeois collectors.

René Lalique Glassware Works by the French designer René Lalique, including perfume bottles, vases, and dressing table pieces predominantly featuring dragonflies, flowers, and feminine figures, symbols of the most refined Art Nouveau.

Perfume bottles Luxury bottles from houses like Baccarat or Lalique, where design transforms the everyday object into an artistic piece.

Chryselephantines Bronze and ivory sculptures by artists such as Demetre Chiparus or Ferdinand Preiss, representing dancers and stylized female figures of Art Deco.

Furniture The museum also features a remarkable selection of furniture created by artists from the French Nancy School, such as Émile Gallé and Louis Majorelle, as well as from the Catalan School, represented by Gaspar Homar and Joan Busquets.

Glassware by Émile Gallé, Daum and the Nancy school The collections housed at Casa Lis show the trajectory of important authors such as Émile Gallé with his superimposed layered glass and exquisite furniture, or the evolution of René Lalique who, starting from Art Nouveau jewelry, focused his creativity on glass design in subsequent decades.

Fans Decorative fans from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, made with silk, lace, and ivory, reflecting the feminine fashion of the era.

Modernist Jewelry Jewelry pieces from firms such as Masriera or Faberge, where Art Nouveau is expressed in organic forms and Art Deco in geometric and sophisticated compositions.

Haguenauer Works by the sculptor Haguenauer, focused on stylized feminine figures with a strong decorative character.

Bathing Beauties Sculptural scenes representing modern leisure: women on the beach, bathing, or in the world of entertainment, reflecting the ideal of elegance of the Belle Époque.

French and German Porcelain Dolls Collection of dolls from houses like Jumeau or Kestner, with a high level of detail in costume and expression, a symbol of bourgeois collecting, which has been defined by experts as the best collection exhibited to the public worldwide.

Toys Industrial tin, wood, and metal toys manufactured by companies such as Märklin or Lehmann.

Painting The painting collection brings together works transitioning between modernism and the early avant-gardes, with European and Spanish authors linked to symbolism and the decorative taste of the era. Highlights include intimate scenes, feminine figures, and compositions with a strong aesthetic charge.

Sculpture Sculpture includes decorative and figurative works from the turn of the century, from symbolist pieces to more stylized Art Deco forms. It integrates European and Spanish authors linked to sculptural modernism, with special attention to the idealized human figure.

THE BUILDING Joaquín de Vargas took advantage of the rocky escarpment of the Teso de las Catedrales to erect the spectacular south facade, conceived as a viewpoint towards the river. A large retaining wall, topped by a wide terraced area, leads to a garden with an ornamental grotto from which an imposing stairway, in the manner of an imperial staircase, splits into two sections that ascend almost vertically to the viewpoint.

The facade is organized into two superimposed iron gallery floors, with a central body that protrudes as a viewpoint and features semicircular arches supported by columns. They were built in Moneo's foundries in Salamanca and constitute the best example of iron architecture in Salamanca. Beneath the galleries extends a frieze of tiles with Neo-Plateresque decoration, a work by Daniel de Zuloaga.

The date engraved on the north facade indicates that the house was completed in 1905. On this facade, Joaquín de Vargas created the best example of Salamanca modernism. Here, he combined Villamayor sandstone with brick. It is preceded by a wall topped by oval-shaped railings, decorated with the characteristic “whiplash effect.” The arched door is inspired by modernist entrances built in Belgium at the same time.

The interior is articulated around a central rectangular patio, surrounded by two floors of glazed galleries supported by cast-iron columns. Originally, this space was an open patio, with a fountain and garden, following the model of Andalusian patios. Today it is covered by a Tiffany-style leaded stained-glass window representing the firmament. It was designed by Manuel Ramos Andrade and created by Juan Villaplana in 1995, as were the rest of the stained-glass windows that give the building the wonderful chromaticism it lacked in its origins.

THE COLLECTIONS Inside, there are approximately 2,500 pieces dated between the late 19th and the 1930s, most of them from the meticulous collecting work of Ramos Andrade. His profession as an antique dealer, the continuous trips he undertook, and his dedication to a style then little appreciated in Spain gave him the opportunity to examine thousands of objects and choose only those he considered true masterpieces.

The museum's itinerary, articulated in nineteen distinct collections, allows visitors to discover the production of the most outstanding European workshops of decorative arts linked to Art Nouveau and Art Déco. Especially noteworthy is the collection of chryselephantines, delicate sculptures combining ivory and bronze that mostly depict dancers or circus figures captured in full motion. European artists, taking advantage of abundant ivory stocks from the colonies, revived this technique inherited from the classical world, replacing traditional gold with bronze. The collection preserved by the Museum is the most important in the world in a public institution, both for its excellent state of preservation and for the quality and rigor of its selection. It features the most relevant artists of the genre, such as Colinet, Preiss, R. Paris, or Chiparus, of whom the best existing collection is exhibited.

The visitor can admire nearly two hundred pieces of glass, including an exquisite selection of lamps and acid-etched and bent glass vases by the Frenchman Émile Gallé; frosted glass paste sculptures and vases by René Lalique; and the creations of the Austrian Loetz, famous for his metallic reflection technique. Added to these are the glazed and lustered vases by Zsolnay, the magnificent glass pieces by the Daum brothers, perfume bottles, translucent and iridescent crystal figures, lamps, and table sets.

The porcelain doll collection, with about four hundred pieces, is considered the best public display in the world. They come from the main French (Jumeau, Bru, Gaultier), German (Steiner, Simon & Halbig, Kestner), and Italian (Lenci) manufacturers.

The museum also has a distinguished selection of furniture created by artists from the French School of Nancy, such as Émile Gallé and Louis Majorelle, as well as from the Catalan School, represented by Gaspar Homar and Joan Busquets. To these are added paintings by Josep Maria Tamburini, Beltrán Massés and the artist from Ciudad Rodrigo Celso Lagar, which further enrich the artistic journey.

The Museum exhibits jewelry by René Lalique, Luis Masriera, and an Easter egg by the Russian Carl Fabergé, who worked for both the Russian Imperial House and the European upper bourgeoisie. It boasts important porcelains from Sèvres and from the Italian schools of Capodimonte and Lenci. The collection is completed by Limoges enamels, Viennese bronzes, fans, handkerchiefs, a complete circus of felt dolls by the German firm Steiff, “bath beauties” figures, Haguenaur sculptures, and various ornamental pieces.