Barcelona – Gaudi’s Workshop
“Not so long ago, a man dreamed of a city. In his dream, the dragons had scales of tiles, the houses smiles of wrought iron and the buildings waves of the sea and mountains. Barcelona was the open workshop that gave shape to the imagination of the genius: Antoni Gaudi” via Ciutat Comtal.
I noticed this language at Ciutat Comtal restaurant during my last visit to Barcelona, Spain and it resonated with me. Gaudi’s influence on the city is tremendous and when I think about Barcelona, Gaudi immediately comes to mind. Here are few of my favorite Gaudi creations in Barcelona.
La Sagrada Familia
Gaudi worked on La Sagrada Familia church until his death in 1926. Since that time, various architects have continued the project based on Gaudi’s original idea. La Sagrada Familia, funded via donation, remains under construction today. The beauty inside and out is unforgettable.
An impressive door in the Passion Facade contains thousands of bronze characters from the New Testament depicting the Passion of Christ.
The central nave includes a forest of fluted pillars supporting four galleries. Skylights let in natural light basking the interior with an ethereal glow.
Casa Batlló
Completed in 1906, Casa Batlló became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2005. Salvador Dali commented that the curving walls and windows were “representing waves on a stormy day”. I find the cat-like balconies fascinating.
La Pedrera
Also known as Casa Milà, La Pedrera was under refurbishment during my last visit so the photos weren’t great. I am excited to return to Gaudi’s last project before he devoted himself to La Sagrada Familia.
Park Güell
It was rainy and cool during my last visit so I didn’t spend much time exploring the incredible Park Güell. What I did see was stunning and I will be back for more.
Do you have a favorite building or structure designed by Antoni Gaudi? I would love to hear about it.
Thanks for this post, just what I needed for my short time here! 🙂 Was really fun seeing you tonight too!
Veera, My pleasure. I really enjoyed meeting you.
Since I’m heading to Barcelona soon, this is ideal. I’ve visited La Sagrada Familia before but never even heard of Casa Batllo. Why can’t I have a cat balcony, too?
Hi Carol, Great to meet you yesterday! I would love a cat balcony too. La Pedrera is looking gorgeous too and they are very close to each other.
great post… We are gearing up for Spain and I love having pics to show the kids… Think I’ll move on to your post on Spain’s pastry shops next as I have a huge sweet tooth!!!
Thank you! I am on my way home from Barcelona at the moment and have a few more photos to add to the Gaudi post. La Pedrera is looking fabulous! There is no shortage of sweets in Barcelona. Enjoy:)
Really enjoyed exploring Gaudi’s architecture around Barcelona! Of course we even saw some of Gaudi’s fine inspiration on our food tour with Devour Barcelona which was really cool. But then again, pretty much anywhere you walk around Barcelona, you are never far away from seeing something inspired by the great man himself.
I am so glad to hear you enjoyed Gaudi’s architecture Chris. I was thinking of the Devour Barcelona food tour earlier today – very fond memories!
I wish I had spent more time in Barcelona this time around. The Sagrada Familia is one of my favorite places to visit. I just found out that Park Güell was build because of Eusebi Guell, the industrialist that build the Colonia Guell village. He commissioned Gaudi to build the park in Barcelona too.
Thank you for the comment. I enjoy Sagrada Familia too. It is interesting to learn about the connection between Park Güell and Colonia Güell. I enjoyed visiting Gaudi’s crypt at Colonia Güell and find it so interesting that Gaudi used the crypt at Colonia Güell as a testing ground for Sagrada Familia. It will be amazing to visit Sagrada Familia when it is complete. I expect there will be a massive celebration in Barcelona!
If there’s one place I’d highly recommend for people who enjoy the above Gaudi masterpieces, be sure to go “off the path” and explore the Torre Bellesguard, a fantastic smaller example of his work that’s far less crowded than any of his other brilliant work.
Thank you for the comment and suggestion Dale. I appreciate learning about “off the path” destinations and will plan to visit Torre Bellesguard when I return to Barcelona.