Félix Candela between philosophy and engineering: the meaning of shape

A prolific season of large projects took place between the late 1940s and the 1960s. A number of bridges and roofs were designed and built exploring a new paradigm of expressivity, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by the use of the reinforced concrete on large scale. This is the period during which masters of engineering like Fèlix Candela provided a large effort to establish novel approaches to the architecture and engineering worldwide. The present paper reports some aspects of an interdisciplinary research that is intended to explore Candela's philosophy. It summarizes basics of Candela work in the light of historical and technical background of the authors. Some interesting aspects of Candela's approach to engineering and architecture appear still actual and are still reflected in many innovative concepts acquired by contemporary design and erection regulatory bodies. © 2013 Taylor & Francis Group.