MADRID, AMBER-TERRA COTTA

In contrast to Lisbon, Madrid's dominant colours are darker and warmer. Madrid is a dry city miles away from the sea. Its river, the Rio Manzanares, is situated in the south west of the city far from the centre. The reason why the sky in Madrid is so blue is because of its dryness. The colours of Madrid are clear but not bright or light. Orange-brown bricks are present in every single street. Even churches and public buildings are built with terra cotta bricks. Landmarks such as La Puerta del Sol or the Plaza Mayor are brown-orange-red. Undergound trains have seats and handle bars in different shades of terra cotta.

We asked what colour the walls of the Plaza Mayor were to the painters and artists that work at the square every day. Some of them said red-brown, others said orange-brown.

Terra cotta is somewhere between orange red and brown. It's the mixture of blood and earth, just like the colour that unfortunately still appears when the bull's blood gets mixed with the sand of Madrid's Plaza de Toros.

Amber is between yellow and orange or between yellow and dark orange. Madrid's roofs have an amberish tone. Many houses are also painted in this colour. Most Spanish guitars, displayed in shops, in "Guitarrerias" and in the streets are also amber.

The red and yellow Spanish flag is also present in many institutional buidings as well as Madrid's flag which is red with yellow stars. Yellow, red, orange and brown are Madrid's main colours.

Madrid is amber-terra cotta.