As Barcelona celebrates the centenary of the master architect’s death, we take a look at seven iconic Antoni Gaudí buildings that have defined the radical vocabulary of Catalan modernism.
Today, it is almost impossible to picture Barcelona without the organic, dreamlike silhouettes of Antoni Gaudí. Just last month marked exactly 100 years since the master architect’s death, and as the city now revels in a year of celebrations honouring his legacy, his presence is more resonant than ever. It is most clear at the Sagrada Familia, which just recently reached a historic milestone as its central Tower of Jesus Christ was structurally completed, crowning a 144-year build and finally giving Barcelona’s skyline its definitive apex.
With his work nearly synonymous with Catalonian architecture and best known for working at the forefront of the Modernisme movement in the 19th and 20th centuries, Gaudí derived inspiration from the popular neo-Gothic and organic styles of the time. His love for nature and religion influenced his designs, and he was fond of using heavily symbolic statues and structural forms. In his later work, he is known for his abandoning straight lines altogether, trading them for sweeping stone, tree-like columns, and radiant ceramic mosaic.
“Gaudí revolutionised architecture by merging the four essential disciplines of the craft: engineering, design, artistry and craftsmanship,” says Daniel Shurinov, founding principal at Bureau Namas, an LA-based architecture firm. “Yet it is his love for artistry and craftsmanship that makes his buildings feel warm and personal to this day.” Gaudí’s belief that architecture should breathe with organic logic is evident in the way his buildings seem to flow freely, without the rigidity of other man-made structures. In Gaudí’s own words: “The great book, always open and which we should make an effort to read, is that of Nature.”
With many of Antoni Gaudí buildings now celebrated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the architect’s radical vision continues to inspire architects across the world. Below, we take a closer look at seven of his most extraordinary feats, from fantastical private residences to the grand, newly topped basilica, that changed the face of Spanish architecture, and beyond.
Photo: Maeva Destombes/Getty Images