Gaudí’s Barcelona, Spain

A remodel of a previously built house, Casa Batlló was redesigned by the famed Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí and is one of his masterpieces, Barcelona, Spain

 

Considered one of the great geniuses of universal architecture, Antoni Gaudí spearheaded one of the lines that shaped the architecture of the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries in Europe, although he never bowed to the formal and aesthetic rules of Modernisme (Catalan Art nouveau).  Born in Reus, Spain, his chief customers were the Barcelona bourgeoisie and the Church.  He understood architecture as a total art, which is evident in the attention he afforded to each of the elements that comprise his work.  Fascinated by nature and geometry, he took advantage of all the innovations of the time, particularly in his use of certain materials, such as iron.  Among his outstanding works besides Casa Milà (also known as La Pedrera), are the church La Sagrada Familia, Park Guell and the home Casa Batlló. – Source: Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera

 

Casa Milà, also know as La Pedrera (1906-1912), is regarded as the zenith of Antoni Gaudí’s work in Barcelona’s Eixample district, Spain

 

Casa Milà, also know as La Pedrera (1906-1912): A great petrified wave.  An ensemble of organic, atavistic forms.  A stone poem, giant sculpture, unique and unparalleled… La Padrera has been described by thousands of adjectives and has sparked multiple interpretations.  And it is because Gaudí’s boundless capacity for creation finds its foremost expression in this building in Barcelona’s Eixample district, which was commissioned by the industrialist’s Pere Milà and his wife, Roser Segmon, intended as a family home and apartments for rent. – Source: Fundació Catalunya-La Pedrera

 

The roof terrace is a unique, unclassifiable architectural achievement, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

The undulating forms and columns on the roof are in keeping with the main facade, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

A gem of Gaudí’s creations is the attic, formed by 270 catenary brick arches, the site of an exhibition dedicated to Gaudí’s life and work with scale models and plans, objects, drawings, photos and videos; Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

A dining room with period furniture in an apartment on the fourth floor of Casa Milà (La Pedrera), part of a recreation of the home and lifestyle of a bourgeois family in the early 20th century, Barcelona, Spain

 

The main automobile entry gate and foyer of Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

Details of a column in the entry foyer of Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

Interior courtyard view of first floor (one level above the ground floor) apartments with unique Gaudí’ window decorations (made of iron), Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

Interior courtyard window and column viewed from the entry foyer, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), Barcelona, Spain

 

Parc Guell (Guell Park) was originally intended as the site of an upscale housing project and, after it fell through, was transformed into a fantasmagorical public park by Gaudí’, Barcelona, Spain

 

One of several imaginative buildings (and towers) designed by Gaudí for Parc Guell, Barcelona, Spain

 

The façade of one of the Gaudí-designed buildings along the entry street to Parc Guell (note the park’s name in the upper two “circles”), Barcelona, Spain