Tag Archives: Gaudi

 And the third and final part:  Gaudi and Casa Batlló

The adjoining buildings to Casa Batlló are attractive in their own right but somewhat eclipsed by Gaudi froufrou.

Casa Batlló was a private residence in the heart of Barcelona and the owners at the turn of last century were clearly not faint-hearted because they commissioned Antoni Gaudi to do a full makeover on their residence. Six stories of Gaudi creativity and flamboyance executed on an existing city terrace house in the early 1900s.  It is spectacular, in a domestic residential sort of way.

A fireplace that was presumably fully functioning in its day

Again, the joy for me was in the light. I have always thought it would be really interesting to have a house with irregular windows breaking free from the square, the rectangle or the circular. Gaudi certainly managed it and the windows even opened. They are nothing short of sensational and, to my mind, the best feature of this extraordinary residence.

In the world of windows, these are simply sensational

Gaudi really didn’t like straight lines and flat surfaces. The ceilings and walls often deviated from the norm and this is very much part of his signature style.

But let us head out onto the roof terrace, along with the other sightseeing hordes. The Spanish do a good line in roof terraces but only Gaudi added the mosaic froufrou that defines this one. Looking down gave me vertigo but I can see how one could sit up there and feel on top of the world, were it private again.

The street view, looking down from the terrace
Promises were made…

In its current state, the terrace is housing a café, festooned with lights and wiring and… wait for it… the Sky Garden. We were gold ticket holders so we alone were permitted to ‘Discover a new perspective of the rooftop’. This has absolutely nothing to do with Gaudi that I could discern but there was a thrill of anticipation as we showed our gold ticket entry and donned the mandatory white hard hats before climbing about three steps onto some scaffolded construction.

I think it is fair to describe the sky garden as over-hyped and under-delivered

A FAKE FLOWER ARBOUR – no, I am not joking. That is synthetic grass, too. It was so bad it was actually funny. What you see in the photos is it but looking better in a photo than in reality. You step up to enter one side, walk through and step down at the other end, handing back your monogrammed hard hat. What were they thinking when this project was conceived?

Why the requirement for a hard hat?

There are unexpected modern introductions to the world of entertainment at Casa Batlló and I guess this is the reality of keeping a modern tourist operation viable. The house is still in private ownership but with the Bernat family these days, not the Batllós. They carried out major restoration and set the place up to cope with one million visitors a year. For me, the restoration of the house alone was fascinating and a complete experience in its own right. It seems that is no longer enough for many others who expect more whistles and bells because the novel and unexpected whimsy of Gaudi is not sufficient.

The sound and light experience at the point just before exit was unexpected and pretty intense. It is billed as ‘The first real 360º experience in the world. The new media artist Refik Anadol presents his pioneering work “In the Mind of Gaudí”.’ We are talking about suddenly being enclosed in a room without warning and immersed in a  three minute surround sound and flashing light experience that was akin to a drug-induced trip. Personally, I doubt that Gaudi lived his life in the permanent state of hyped-up hallucination but there we are. It was at least beautifully put together and executed, unlike the modest rooftop flower garden of fake flowers.

The actual Gaudi was a complete experience in itself for me.

I see one aspect of the modern Batlló experience entirely bypassed me and that is the capacity to illuminate the front façade at night in ever-changing colours and effects. I like a good lighting display but I rather feel that one might want black-out curtains were one a resident in the many neighbouring apartments.  I am sure it was much quieter when the original family were still in residence.

Next week – back to gardening and gardens of the French Riviera.

The light, the light.

Let there be light

Part 1: Gaudi and the Sagrada Familia

It is hard to grasp the scale of the Sagrada Familia when beside or inside it. Here it is as seen in the distance from Park Güell

I had never been to Barcelona before landing there on my May trip. My few days in Barcelona turned in to a crash course on Gaudi and I loved every minute of it. I wanted to see the Sagrada Familia, having heard so many others speak of it. To that, my daughter added Park Güell and Casa Batlló and I knew absolutely nothing at all about them before I visited. Clearly I did not do a lot of research in advance and this may not be a bad thing because it meant I had no expectations at all. And verily, I was amazed.

I knew the Sagrada Familia had been under construction for quite some time but I thought I had read that it had finally been completed. It hasn’t been completed yet and that shouldn’t surprise us. Many of the major churches and cathedrals from times past took a century or more to build and even then had more additions in subsequent centuries. The Sagrada Familia is technically designated a basilica by papal decree, not a cathedral, and construction has been ongoing since it was started in 1882.

Even the ceilings are remarkable with their detail
and the cloisters

I checked and it seems that it is scheduled for completion in 2026 but I think that might just be the towers and, with six still to go, I wouldn’t bank on that date. The planned main entrance and additional decoration and sculptures will see work continuing well into the 2030s. The scaffolding, cranes and protective shields will likely remain in place for a while longer yet.

No matter. What has been completed is astounding and takes quite a bit to visually absorb. The sheer scale is impressive as is the detail and complexity. I am sure that any readers who have seen it will agree that it is quite simply an extraordinary building.

Flooded with late afternoon light

The stained glass is certainly impressive and varies from traditional to contemporary and the colour palette changes for different walls.  But it was the interplay of architecture and afternoon light that simply took my breath away. Much of the Sagrada is impressive, interesting, curious, even odd at times but the light – the light was an emotional experience for me.

Antoni Gaudi was an architect but his skills and creativity went well beyond the designing of buildings. While hailed as the leading practitioner of the style now termed ‘Catalan Modernism’, I think his work is so individual, varied and unique that it probably warrants its own category as simply ‘Gaudi’. The Sagrada is described as a meeting between gothic style and Art Nouveau. I would add Arts and Crafts into the mix, too.

Above the entry on the first side of the basilica to be completed
And the more recent entry completed on the opposite side

I found the contrast in styles between the entrance that was completed first in a more traditional style and the cubist approach to the more recent entrance on the other side very odd. From what I read on line, considerable effort is being made to keep to Gaudi’s vision so he must have left some records to hint at the blocky, Cubist style of ornamentation and religious imagery.

And then there is the very odd whimsy of the coloured fruit on top of the gables.

To be honest, I am just not sure what was in the architect’s mind just here

The Sagrada Familia remains the magnus opus of Gaudi but was by no means his only work. More on the grandeur, the detail, the mastery of light, the whimsy and, dare I say it, the occasional descent into kitsch in the next part on  Park Güell.