Felix Candela. In memorian (1910-1997). From thin concrete shells to the 21st century's lightweight structures

January 27(th) of this year, 2010, was the centenary of the birth of a famous architect of Spanish origin, Felix Candela, one of the most prominent players in modern architecture's thin shell adventure. His international fame was based on precisely that, the construction of over 800 thin concrete shells characterized not only by their rationality and optimal strength, but also by their striking sculptural beauty. Architects such as Frei Otto, Ove Arup and David Billington justifiably called his work "structural art". In addition analyzing Felix Candela's contribution to modern architecture, the present article explores new lightweight structures as the ongoing pursuit of the optimization of structural form with different materials and technologies. That pursuit, both past and present, constitutes the focus of attention of the International Association for Structural Shells, IASS, founded by Eduardo Torroja in 1959 and fully operational today.