Antonio Gaudi: the most mysterious architect in history who worked miracles. Antonio Gaudi and his famous houses Where are the Gaudi houses in Barcelona

Nowadays, few people have not heard of the architect and the Sagrada Familia, his most famous work. Catalans idolize Gaudi, because it was thanks to him that Barcelona acquired its unique style.

Biography of Antonio Gaudi reveals a lot of interesting points about his life, despite the fact that all his life the genius was a rather reserved person, having practically no friends. Architecture was the main meaning of his life, an element in which he did not give concessions to anyone, often being harsh and cruel with workers. Antonio Gaudi i Cornet born on June 25, 1852 in Reus (Catalonia), or in a village near this town, becoming the fifth child in the family. It is the fact that his entire childhood was spent near the sea that explains the bizarre shapes of the genius’s buildings, reminiscent of sand castles. Even as a child, Antonio suffered from pneumonia and rheumatism. Due to his illnesses, he had practically no friends, so the boy was often alone with nature, even then dreaming of becoming an architect. Subsequently, this influenced the creation of forms in his creations that were close to natural.

Since 1868, Gaudi moved to Barcelona, where he took architectural courses. One of the teachers called him either a genius or crazy for his unconventional projects. Gaudi never used drawings or computers; in his work he was guided only by intuition, making all calculations in his mind. It cannot be said that the architect was in search of his own style; he simply saw the world this way, creating masterpieces of architecture. Here we can point out the fact that Antonio’s ancestors, right up to his great-grandfathers, were boilermakers; the most complex products were made “by eye”, without drawings. This apparently was their family trait. In 1878, he was finally noticed and received his first commission - designing a Barcelona street lamp. The following year the project was fully implemented.

House of Vicens

The House of Vicens (Casa Vicens, 1878) was designed for diploma student and building materials manufacturer Manuel Vincens at the beginning of Gaudí's architectural career. The house has a simple rectangular plan, built of stone and brick, but the architect equipped the building with rich ceramic decoration and so many extensions, turrets and balconies that the house looked like a fairy-tale palace. The master drew inspiration from ancient Arab architecture. Gaudi himself designed the window bars and garden fence, and also made sketches of the interior of the dining room and smoking room. This project was the first to use the experience of creating a parabolic arch. This villa can be seen on Carolines Street, unfortunately now without a garden.

His career began with very modest commissions; in addition to a street lamp for the Royal Square, he designed store windows and designed street toilets. But thanks to this, he was noticed by the wealthy industrialist Count Eusebio Güell y Bacigalupi, who became his patron and regular customer until the count’s death in 1918. Count Guell gave Gaudí complete freedom, thereby allowing him to express himself. Everything that Antonio built for Güell became a collection of masterpieces that Barcelona is so proud of.

Gaudí's first work for Count Güell was the construction of the count's estate in the district of Garraf (1884-1887). Only the gate with the forged dragon remained intact; the appearance of the mighty monster on the gate was very symbolic, since it is part of the emblem of Catalonia, and its curves follow the outlines of the Draco constellation. This was what Gaudi was all about; all his buildings and sculptures are imbued with symbolism. Next to the gate are the entrance pavilions, which formerly housed the stables, the riding arena and the gatekeeper's house, and now the Gaudí Research Center. The domed turrets on these pavilions are reminiscent of the book One Thousand and One Nights.

Gaudí’s most unique work for the count was the building of the Barcelona residence of the Güells (1886-1891). This building is a clear reflection of Gaudí's own style. A unique combination of materials and multi-colors creates fantastic images. The roof of this building is covered with decorative chimneys and ventilation pipes of unimaginable types, none of which are repeated. Gaudi did not forget about the practicality of his buildings; thanks to the huge arches, it was easy for carriages to enter the stables located under the house. Inside the house there was a spacious main hall, which was crowned with a dome with holes, so that even during the day, raising your head, it seemed as if you were looking at the starry sky. Everything in this building was designed by Gaudí, the balcony railings, the furniture, the stucco on the ceilings, the columns (forty different shapes).

The architect's main dream was to build churches; he was a deeply religious man. He was approached by the Catholic Church to complete the building of the College of the Sisters of the Order of St. Teresa, which had been abandoned by another architect. The order's funds were very meager, since the order took a vow of poverty. But Gaudi was able to give this building a sophisticated, sophisticated style, decorating it not luxuriously, but modestly: with the coats of arms of the order, turrets with crosses and arches.

Another order of the church was the episcopal palace in Astorga (1887-1893), which he never managed to complete, since the Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid, whose permission was required for the implementation of this project, hounded the architect with amendments, and he quit the job because defended every stroke on his drawings. The palace was completed by a different architect, but retained the general appearance of Gaudi, reminiscent of medieval castles with its turrets and buttresses.

However, of course, the most famous work of the master remains the Sagrada Familia (Cathedral of the Holy Family), made in an atypical style for temple architecture. Construction of the cathedral architect Antonio Gaudi devoted a lot of time and effort, starting it in 1883, however, the building was never completed due to the death of Antoni Gaudi. After the genius passed away, the Sagrada Familia project remained unfinished, since Antonio did not like to draw, and there were no original drawings left after him. The forms and symbolism of the cathedral are so complex, and Gaudí's working method is so unique, that all subsequent attempts to continue the construction looked too uncertain.

In addition to the Sagrada Familia, Barcelona is home to 13 major buildings by Antoni Gaudí, which give the city a unique flavor and give an idea of the style of the brilliant creator. These include Casa Mila (a residential building whose walls are painted on the inside, and on a flat, uneven roof there are chimneys lined with pieces of glass and ceramics), Casa Batllo (the wavy, scaly roof of which resembles a giant snake), Porta Mirales (a rounded wall , covered with tiles made of tortoiseshell), Park Güell (which is an urban style in nature, there is not a single straight line here, this park has become the pearl of Barcelona), the church of the Güell country estate, the Bellesguard house (a villa in the form of a Gothic castle with stained glass windows of a complex star shape ) and of course many others, since, having become “fashionable” among wealthy citizens, he did not go out of it until the end of his life.

Architect Antonio Gaudi died when hit by a tram on June 7, 1926. There is widespread information that on this day the first tram was launched in Barcelona and that it was supposedly that the architect was crushed by it, but this is just a legend. Gaudi was an unkempt old man and was mistaken for a homeless man. He died three days later on June 10, in a homeless shelter, but he was identified quite by chance by an elderly woman. And thanks to her, the great architect was not buried in a common grave, but was buried with honors in the building of his entire life, the Temple of the Holy Family, where you can see his grave and death mask.

By decision of UNESCO, Park Güell, Palace Güell and Casa Mila were declared heritage of humanity.

The Spanish architect Gaudi and his houses, which have become iconic in world architecture, turned the capital of Spain, Barcelona, into an architectural pearl. In what style did a unique, gifted person work, who additionally combined an artist, a sculptor and a builder? What is the secret of his work? What is the fate of a genius?

Gaudi - style in the service of tradition

The founder of his own architectural style, Antonio Gaudi i Cornet

The Catalan architect, born on June 25, 1852, through his work expressed the cultural characteristics of his homeland through the fusion of architectural styles and traditions. It does not fit into any architectural movement. His work is unique and completely different from generally accepted concepts. And the power of the aesthetic experience of Gaudi’s creations only becomes greater over time.

There is not a single straight line in its structures. Architectural forms flow from one to another. He modestly built according to the laws of Nature and did not strive to surpass it.

What is the originality of Gaudi's style?

In 1878, the director of the Barcelona School of Architecture, Elies Rogent, said of Antonio at his graduation ceremony: “We have given this academic title to either a blockhead or a genius. Time will show". At first, Gaudi participated in competitions without success, studied crafts, designed fences, lanterns, and furniture.

“Nothing is invented, everything originally exists in nature. Originality is a return to the roots,” the master said about his works. The hallmark of Gaudí's style was the expression of natural forms in architecture.

Gaudi's style is

the world of uneven surfaces such as we see in nature;
design solutions proposed by nature;
decorativeness that exists in nature;
continuation of the space created by nature.

Five years after graduating from the School of Architecture in Barcelona, he received his first important commission from the owner of a ceramic factory, Manuel Vicens.

Bad luck - the beginning: the house of ceramics tycoon Vicens

Casa Vicens (1883-1888) is a residential building for the owner of a ceramic factory, which is clearly reflected in the facade "trencadis" (i.e. the use of ceramic waste). Gaudi decorated the facade of the house with a mosaic of pieces of tiles, which was completely unusual in the use of building materials.

At this time, in Europe there was an interest in the neo-Gothic style with the motto “Decorativeness is the beginning of architecture.” Gaudi also adhered to this rule in his works. His work at the time was reminiscent of the Moorish (or Mudejar) style of architecture, a unique blend of Muslim and Christian design in Spain.

A private house opens its doors to visitors once a year, on May 22. Everyone can appreciate the detailed design of the building, from the mosaics of the exterior to the stained glass windows and wall paintings.

Incredible luck and Gaudí's only unrequited love

In 1878, Antoni Gaudí decided to display his work at the Paris World Exhibition. His work impressed the richest man in Catalonia, esthete and philanthropist, Eusebi Güell. He provided Antonio with what every creator dreams of: complete freedom of expression with an unlimited budget!

Gaudi carries out projects for the family

pavilions of the estate in Pedralbes near Barcelona;
wine cellars in Garraf,
chapels and crypt of the Colony Güell (Santa Coloma de Cervelho);
the fantastic Park Guella and its palace in Barcelona.

This was the best and at the same time sad period in the personal life of the architect. The only girl who turned out to be worthy of his attention, Josepha Moreu, did not reciprocate his feelings. Having accepted his fate, Gaudi devoted himself entirely to creativity and religion.

Royal garden in Gaudi style

Gaudí's first large-scale project for his great patron, Eusebi Güell, was the pavilions of the estate. Construction took place between 1883 and 1887. The landscape design of the park of the count's summer residence, which today has become the park of the Royal Palace, the entrance gates, pavilions, and stables bear the characteristic features of the early period of creativity.

The most interesting work in the complex turned out to be the northern cast-iron gate. They are decorated with floral motifs in the style, and a medallion with the letter “G”. An impressive feature is the large wrought iron dragon with glass eyes.

This is the same Ladon who turns into the constellation Serpen for stealing golden apples. Its figure corresponds to the location of the stars in the constellation.

Palace Güell (Palau Güell) (1885-1890)

The residence of the philanthropist's family became the architect's first building in which structural elements also serve a decorative function. Antonio uses steel supporting structures as decoration.

The façade of the building features two pairs of large gates through which horse-drawn carriages and carts could proceed directly to the lower stables and cellars, while guests could climb the stairs to the upper floors.

The soul of the creator is looking for new forms. From the outside, the house has a calm façade reminiscent of a Venetian palazzo. But the interior and roof make up for the lack of Gaudí style elements on the exterior.

Living room of the Palace of Guella with a star ceiling in the style of Gaudi

In the central living room, an unusual parabolic dome is dotted with round holes that make the ceiling look starry during the day.

The silhouettes of chimneys and ventilation shafts opening onto the roof take on various fantastic shapes. The roof is reminiscent of Park Güell.

The rich interiors of the palace combine works of decorative and applied art, intarsia (wood inlay) and custom-made furniture.

The design of the walls and flat vaults of the palace is unique. In 1984, Palace Güell, along with other architectural masterpieces of Gaudí, was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Expression of Gaudí's style in the architecture of Park Guella

In 1900 - 1914, Gaudí worked on creating a park residential area in the English style. To implement the concept of a garden city, fashionable in those years, Guell acquired 15 hectares of land for the construction of 62 private mansions. The project's economic failures forced his heirs to sell the park to the city. Now it houses Gaudi's house-museum.

For this site, Gaudí designed two magnificent entrance pavilions that serve as gates. A large ornamented staircase leads to the Hypostyle Hall, intended by the architect as a place for a market. The esplanade is surrounded by a long serpentine bench made of precast concrete blocks clad in ceramic mosaic.

Devoted to his principles, Gaudí used only local materials. He designed the system of streets and viaducts in such a way that their construction had minimal impact on the environment. They were maximally adapted to the landscape.

This principle makes his architecture and some researchers of his work call Gaudi's style eco-modern.

Gaudi and his houses “From the Bones” and “Quarry”

Thanks to his inimitable style, Gaudi becomes the most fashionable architect in Barcelona. It turns into “unaffordable luxury”, creating houses one more unusual than the other. The Spanish bourgeoisie spend their fortunes on the implementation of the artist's brilliant ideas.

Casa Batllo or House of Bones. Barcelona residents also call it “Yawning” and “Dragon House”, its façade is so diverse.

Gaudi's style is a reverently respectful relationship with the Creator, which was established in childhood. Rheumatism limited the boy from playing with his peers, but did not interfere with long solo walks on a donkey.

Observing the world around him, the architect drew inspiration to solve constructive or decorative architectural problems for clients. In his work, he used elements of a wide variety of styles, transforming them into a special direction called Spanish ( modernismo).

Why did the city authorities criticize the House of Bones?

The fruit of the architect's whimsical imagination - the residential building of textile magnate Josep Batlló (Casa Batlló) - became a living, trembling creature. Gaudí reconstructed an existing building in 1904-1906, awaiting demolition. He used typical structural elements of Catalan architecture: ceramics, stone and wrought iron.

Although the work was criticized by the city, in 1906 the Barcelona City Council recognized him as one of the three best buildings of the year.

Due to the radical design, Gaudí violated all city bylaws during construction. And not because he is a “prankster”, but because the author’s style went beyond the limiting framework of traditional architecture and urban planning. Those in power had to change the laws.

Which building was Gaudí's last secular work?

Quarry house in Barcelona in Gaudi style

In 1906, another great loss occurred in the life of the architect: his father, a blacksmith and boilermaker, Francesc Gaudí i Sierra, died. According to Antonio, it was in his father’s workshop that he felt space as living matter. His father taught him to understand the beauty of the objective world and instilled in him a love of architecture and drawing.

This is not the first loss in the master’s life. Born as the fifth child in the family, this year he was left completely alone with his niece in his care, whom he buried 6 years later.

It was during this period that Antonio's new ideas were embodied in the house for the Mila family (casa Mila, 1906 - 1910). His innovation was as follows.

He is thinking over a natural ventilation system, which makes it possible to avoid air conditioning.
Constructs a building without load-bearing and supporting walls (reinforced concrete structure with load-bearing columns). This makes it possible to move the interior partitions in each apartment at your discretion. Today this technology is popular among builders of monolithic frame houses.
Sets up an underground garage.
Every room in the house has a window, which is also unusual for the early 20th century. For this purpose, three courtyards are provided.

The undulating facade is a harmonious mass of all kinds of stone, which, along with the wrought iron balconies, was nicknamed “the quarry” or La Pedrera by Barcelona residents.

One of Gaudi's most interesting design solutions is the attic of the house. The room, once intended for washing and drying clothes, has now become the site of a permanent exhibition of Gaudí's work and life.

This building became the first structure of the twentieth century included in the UNESCO heritage (1984). And during construction, the customer and the builders paid more than one fine for violating generally accepted standards.

Casa Mila was the last secular work before the architect devoted himself entirely to the work of the Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family (Sagrada Familia). He no longer took on new orders, but worked on finishing current projects.

Colony Crypt of Guella

The word “colony” does not at all carry the meaning of “corrective labor.” What is this you can read at channel Zen Architecture.

The crypt, in this case, means the lower floor of the church, which Gaudí began construction in 1908 and completed in 1914, commissioned by his friend and philanthropist Eusebi Güell. The architect was tasked with providing a cultural and religious basis for the life of the town of workers employed in the industrialist's production.

Interior of the crypt of a church in the Colony of Guella. The columns are made of basalt, brick and limestone depending on the load.

Following his principles, Gaudi organically integrated the church into the landscape of the area. For the interior, he designed amazing benches made of wood and iron, reflecting his roots as a hereditary blacksmith.

More details about the masterpiece Colony Guell crypt, if interested, read on the Zen Architecture channel.

The brilliance and poverty of the architect Gaudi

A dandy in his youth, a gourmet and theatergoer who traveled in his own carriage, in adulthood began to lead an ascetic lifestyle. On June 7, 1926, he, a 73-year-old man, dressed in a shabby suit and without documents, was hit by a tram. Not knowing that this was a great architect, the victim was taken to a hospital for the poor. The next day, the chaplain (Gaudi's main creation, to which he devoted more than 40 years) found him and transported him to another hospital. But the best doctors were powerless.

You will recognize the architecture of Antonio Gaudi and his houses in Barcelona, which have become a world heritage of mankind, even if you are not at all familiar with his work. They continue to build and hope to complete it by 2026.

Antonio Gaudi: the most mysterious architect in history who worked miracles

We often hear about brilliant musicians, writers, and poets. When applied to architecture, the word “brilliant” is used much less frequently. Perhaps because it is much more difficult to realize such a talent than any other. All the more valuable to history is anyone who managed to replenish the architectural heritage of mankind with creations of unique beauty. The brightest and most mysterious among such geniuses is the Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi - the creator of the legendary Sagrada Familia Cathedral, Palace Guell, Casa Batllo and other unique masterpieces that adorn Barcelona today, making it a truly unique city.

Antonio Gaudi was born in Catalonia in 1852 in the family of the blacksmith Francisco Gaudi i Serra and his wife Antonia Curnet i Bertrand. In the family he was the youngest of five children. After the death of Antonio's mother, two brothers and sister, he settled in Barcelona with his father and niece. Since childhood, Gaudí was very sick; rheumatism prevented him from playing with other children. Instead, he took long walks alone, which he eventually grew to love. It was they who helped him become closer to nature, which throughout his subsequent life inspired the architect to solve the most incredible constructive and artistic problems.

The brilliant architect Antonio Gaudi.

While studying at Catholic college, Antonio was most interested in geometry and drawing. In his free time, he spent time exploring local monasteries. Already in those years, teachers admired the works of the young artist Gaudi. And he said with complete seriousness that his talent was God’s gift. In the process of creating his creations, he often turned to the theme of God, and did not deviate from it even when choosing the artistic aspects of his work. For example, he did not like straight lines, calling them a product of man. But Gaudi adored circles and was convinced of their divine origin. These principles can be clearly seen in all his 18 architectural creations, which today are the pride of Barcelona. They are characterized by a bold combination of materials, textures and colors. Gaudi used his own unsupported floor system, which made it possible not to “cut” the rooms into parts. Repeating his calculations became possible only after NASA created a calculation of the flight trajectories of spacecraft.

The architect’s first buildings were “House of Vicens”, “El Capriccio”, “Pavilion of the Güell Estate”. They differ significantly from each other, however, they are all decorated with a large number of decorative details in the neo-Gothic style.

"Pavilion of the Guell estate."

In general, the architectural style of Antoni Gaudi is phantasmagorical, difficult to define, although the architect was called a genius of modernism. Gaudi was the most prominent representative of his national romantic movement, Catalan modernism. Incredibly, he was not helped by design engineers, he acted on instinct, relying only on his sense of harmony, often improvised and tried to convey his idea to his assistants using drawings on the board. His architectural creations have everything: bizarre structural forms, sculptures, paintings, mosaics, color plastics. They contain people and animals, fantastic creatures, trees, flowers.

Casa Batllo.

Antonio was very handsome, however, in his personal life he was lonely. Of course, he had affairs, but none of them ended in marriage or any kind of serious relationship. In essence, he was married to his creations. Antonio was a quite wealthy man and had the opportunity to rent any housing, but while working on the next project he invariably lived right at the construction site, equipping a small closet for himself, and wore old overalls.

Gaudí's architecture makes Barcelona unique.

This was the case during his work on his favorite and, perhaps, most grandiose creation - the Sagrada Familia Cathedral, the Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family, the construction of which he never had the opportunity to complete. It began in 1882, when Gaudí was 30 years old, and has not been completed to this day. The architect devoted 40 years of his life to this project. And on June 7, 1926, Gaudi left the construction site and disappeared. On the same day, on one of the streets of Barcelona, a poor man was run over by a tram. Only a few days later he was identified as the greatest architect Antonio Gaudi. He found his last refuge in one of the chapels of the Sagrada Familia.

Cathedral of the Sagrada Familia.

During Gaudi's funeral procession, in which probably half the city took part, a mystical thing happened. Many townspeople, among whom were very respected people, claimed that they saw ghosts in the crowd of people who came to say goodbye to the genius. For example, Salvador Dali spoke about this.

In the Sagrada Familia cathedral.

Today, this mystery, which once excited Barcelona, has already become history and the subject of excursions. But there are still people who believe that if you exactly repeat the route of Gaudi’s last journey, you can get a piece of his incredible talent. And we can simply be grateful to the genius for his selfless devotion to art and love for the people to whom he left a priceless architectural heritage.

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One of the greatest architects in the world and the most famous architect of Barcelona, Gaudi could have died at birth. His mother’s birth was very difficult, and the midwife immediately gave up on the boy. To save the soul of the newborn, he was immediately baptized. Gaudí subsequently claimed that the fact that he survived was a miracle. And he believed that he had been chosen for a special purpose.

Childhood

Antonio Gaudi was born on June 25, 1852 in the small town of Reus, located in Catalonia. His father was the hereditary blacksmith Francesc Gaudi i Sierra, and his mother, after whom the boy was named, was Antonia Cornet i Bertrand. The child received his surname, as was customary in Spain, from both parents - Gaudi y Cornet.
The father taught the child to understand the beauty of the things around him and instilled in Gaudí a love for architecture and fine arts. From his mother he adopted faith in God and religiosity.
The boy grew up very sickly: he suffered from a severe form of arthritis, which caused severe pain from the simplest movements. He did not play outdoor games and rarely went for walks. It was difficult for him to walk, so he went for a walk on a donkey. But in mental development he was significantly ahead of many other children. Antonio was observant and liked to draw.
In 1863, he began studying at a school at a Franciscan monastery. In addition to Greek, poetry, rhetoric and Latin, he studied Christian doctrine, the history of religion and other religious disciplines, which influenced his way of thinking and creativity. Despite his intelligence, Antonio did poorly in school, and only geometry was easy for him.
Gaudi's family experienced many tragedies: his brother died in 1876. Following him, his mother also passed away. And 3 years later, the architect’s sister passed away, leaving her daughter in his care.

Studies

In 1868 Antonio moved to Barcelona. To pay for his education, he had to sell his father's lands. He became a student at the Higher School of Architecture only in 1874. Before this, Gaudi studied at the university at the Faculty of Exact Sciences, where he showed little diligence.
The school of architecture allowed more freedom for creativity and self-expression, and Gaudí soon became one of the best students. But his stubborn character and desire for protests often turned into low marks for him. The teachers decided that he was either a genius or crazy.
During his student years, the rheumatic pain in his legs finally disappeared, and Gaudí was able to walk normally. And this became one of his favorite activities.
Antonio completed his studies in 1878. And in 1906 he suffered another grief - the death of his father. Six years later, his niece followed him to the grave.

Carier start

From 1870 to 1882, Gaudí worked as a draftsman under the guidance of two architects, Francisco Villar and Emilio Sala. He learned crafts and entered competitions without success.
At first he carried out applied orders. The first official work of the architect Gaudi was lampposts in Plaza Reial.

These pillars were a candelabra of 6 arms mounted on a marble base. They are crowned with helmets of Mercury - a symbol of prosperity. This work was the first and last order of the city authorities, since the local municipality and Gaudí disagreed about his fee.
In 1877, the architect created his first major creation - fountain in Plaza Catalunya. And, starting from this time, he erected many unique buildings in the Art Nouveau style.

In 1883, Gaudí designs the first mansion. The wealthy manufacturer Manuel Vicens becomes his customer. It was necessary not only to build the house, but also to successfully fit it into the small space of the plot of land, frame it with a garden and at the same time create the illusion of space. The architect coped with this task brilliantly: turrets, bay windows, and balconies give the simple quadrangular building (cat. Casa Vicens) amazing volume.

In 1898 – 1900 is being built (cat. Casa Calvet). Unlike other Gaudi buildings, the house has a completely traditional appearance, and its facades are symmetrical. Its originality is given by alternating convex and flat balconies, as well as bobbins and columns in the form of coils - a tribute to the professional affiliation of the owner, who owned the textile industry. For the construction of this building, the architect was awarded the Barcelona Municipal Prize in 1900.
Gaudi rarely took into account the opinion of the customer. He was modest, but at the same time eccentric, and embodied all his fantasies in his works.

He was lucky to be born at a time when the Spanish bourgeoisie became rich and decided to show the whole world their triumph. Building a more elaborate house than your neighbor's was an easy way to prove your superiority. Therefore, architects with an original vision, and not always talented ones, were popular and had complete freedom of action.
During the same period, Gaudí erected buildings in the neo-Gothic style and in the spirit of the fortress, such as the one he started Bishop's Palace in the city of Astorga (cat. Palacio Episcopal de Astorga). The design of this building, located in Castilla, was entrusted to the architect in 1887 by the Bishop of Grau i Vallespinos, a Catalan by birth. Gaudi began to build a palace in the form of a medieval fortress, with a moat, four towers and battlements. This was a very daring decision for the clergyman's palace, but the bishop did not argue. The construction was interrupted by the sudden death of the customer in 1893, and the church council, dissatisfied with the excessive costs, entrusted the completion of the construction to another architect.

In addition to large-scale architectural works, Gaudi was involved in interior design and development of furniture sketches.

Fame

All the sights of Barcelona and other cities created by Antonio Gaudi are magnificent, but the works created after meeting Eusebio Güell brought him real popularity. He was a textile magnate, the richest Catalan, with creative flair and taste. And he became a friend and patron of the brilliant architect.
There are two versions of their friendship - one, they met at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1878, where Gaudi presented the project for the village of Mataro. However, this version is hardly plausible, since the models of the unknown architect could not attract the attention of the public.
According to another version, Guell noticed Antonio when he was decorating a Barcelona glove store. After receiving his diploma, the young man needed money and took on any job. When decorating the window, Gaudi did it impressively: from gloves strung on wire, he created entire scenes of city life: horses pulling carriages, people walking and cats, beloved by all Catalans.
Fascinated by the master’s work, Guell watched his work for a long time, and then asked the store owner to introduce him to Gaudi. Having learned that the young man was an architect, he invited him to visit him, where he received him warmly and cordially. After this, Gaudí became a frequent guest in Güell's house. He showed him new sketches of his buildings, and Eusebio always entrusted him with the construction of those that became a real masterpiece.
Many of the works and houses of the architect Gaudí will survive centuries, but these are the ones that brought him fame and finally shaped his unique style.

Palace Güell (cat. Palao Guell).

This house, the construction of which journalists compared with the construction of the Tower of Babel, was built in 1885 - 1900. Guell did not limit the architect's funds for construction and interior design. Only the most luxurious materials were used in the interior decoration of this house: tortoiseshell, ivory, ebony and eucalyptus. And if in the interior the most interesting part was the hall with a sky dome, then in the exterior the most impressive thing is the roof with 18 chimneys in the form of fancy turrets.

Casa Mila (cat. Casa Mila)

Casa Mila or Casa Mila was created by Antonio Gaudi in 1906-1910. for the Mila family. At first, Barcelona residents did not appreciate this steep, curved building, and nicknamed it La Pedrera - the quarry. The roof is also decorated with turrets that look like knights in fancy helmets, one of which is inlaid with shards of green bottle glass.

Casa Batllo (cat. Casa Batllo)

Antoni Gaudi's Casa Batllo also known as Casa Batllo And House of Bones, was rebuilt by Gaudí between 1904 and 1906. In the building, transformed by genius, there are practically no straight lines. Its facade obviously depicts a dragon - the image of Evil. And the skulls and bones visible in the balconies and columns are his victims. A tower with a cross - the sword of St. George, the patron saint of Catalonia - pierces the body of the dragon, symbolizing the victory of the forces of Light over Darkness.

Park Guell (cat. Parc Guell)

Park Güell in Barcelona was created between 1900 and 1914 and was a combination of residential areas and gardens. From a commercial point of view, this project was a failure because the Catalans did not want to live in the hills. But nowadays Park Güell is one of the brightest attractions of Barcelona. The central entrance to the park is decorated with two pavilions that look like huge gingerbread houses, and on the upper terrace there is a giant bench in the shape of a sea serpent. Gaudi chose this Park to live in and owned one of the houses.

(cat. Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia)

With the birth of Antonio Gaudi, the architecture of the whole world was enriched with many works, but the most outstanding was the Sagrada Familia. Gaudi began work on this cathedral in Barcelona in 1883, but did not have time to finish it. In this structure, as in many others, the architect reflected what he saw in living nature. A forest of columns with capitals in the form of branches, intertwining, create the arch of the building, and each tower and stained glass window tells its own biblical story.
According to Gaudi's plan, the cathedral was supposed to have 3 facades depicting the life of Christ (Birth, Passion and Resurrection). It was also planned to install 12 towers symbolizing the apostles, 4 higher towers dedicated to the evangelists, the tower of the Virgin Mary and the highest - 170 m, which was intended for Christ. The God-fearing Catalan did not want the temple to be higher than the Montjuic hill (171 m), because the mountain is the creation of God, and the building is man’s.

Gaudí's architecture was far ahead of its time. During the construction of the Temple, Antonio Gaudi based the columns, vaults and other details on complex three-dimensional shapes, which can now only be recreated using computer modeling. And the architect developed them only with the help of his imagination and intuition.

It is curious that the temple is being built exclusively on anonymous donations from parishioners. When this structure is completed (expected to happen by 2026), it will become the tallest church in the world.

Antonio Gaudi was extremely extravagant and stubborn. This is probably why quite funny incidents arose with him.
Despite the fact that Gaudí rarely had conflicts with male customers, disputes with their wives were not uncommon. The owner of the Batlo house was upset with the way the construction of their home was being carried out. She noticed that due to the oval shape of the room in the music salon, it would be impossible to place her daughter’s piano. Gaudi ignored tactfully made comments and left everything unchanged. The angry woman spoke harshly to the architect, but he, without embarrassment, said: the piano won’t fit, buy a violin.

Gaudí and his father were vegetarians and were committed to clean water and fresh air. At the same time, Antonio, like a true Christian, showed moderation in food. For lunch, he, a rather large man, ate only lettuce leaves, dipped in milk, and a handful of nuts.
Gaudi loved Catalonia dearly and dreamed of enriching its culture. One day, the police mistook an unkemptly dressed architect for a tramp and stopped him. They asked him several questions in Castilian, but he answered them in Catalan. At this time, there was a fight against “Catalan nationalism”, and Gaudí was threatened with prison. Having finally realized that this was a well-known architect at that time, they wanted to hush up the matter, but he continued to chatter carefree in his native language. That's why he spent 4 hours in the police station.
Gaudi's construction costs were enormous. When the architect, in addition to the main bill, presented the Mila family with an invoice for overtime work, the couple refused to pay. The architect went to court, and the decision was made in his favor. The Mila family had to take out a mortgage on the house they built to pay the bill. Gaudi gave the money to one of the convents.
More scandalous things are also attributed to the architect: it is believed that for the scene of the beating of infants he made casts of stillborn children, and in order to accurately repeat the contours of the animals, he euthanized them with chloroform before applying plaster.

Personal life

The great architect Gaudi spent his entire life alone. In his youth, he dressed very flashily and attracted the attention of women. However, having learned about his profession, which at that time was considered akin to an artisan, they lost interest in him. Women were concerned about the well-being of the groom, and the work of an architect did not guarantee financial stability.
Antonio's first love was the beautiful Josepha Moreu, funny nicknamed Pepeta. In 1884, this wayward woman worked as a teacher at the Mataro cooperative school. Gaudí carried out orders for this enterprise and often visited Pepeta and her sister.
Pepeta gladly accepted the advances of the young, educated architect. Together they visited the Güell drawing room, where all the intellectuals of Barcelona gathered once a week. But at the same time, she kept the inexperienced gentleman at a distance. Finally, Antonio proposed to her. And he was taken aback: Pepeta announced that she was already engaged to a successful timber merchant.
Gaudi never proposed to another girl. Years later, he fell in love again with a woman, a young American. But their relationship ended when she returned to the States.

Death

Throughout his life, Gaudi loved to walk around Barcelona. But if in his youth he looked good and dressed elegantly, then in the middle of his life he stopped paying attention to his appearance and resembled a beggar.
On June 7, 1926, he left the house to take his usual walk to the temple of Sant Felip Neri. At this time he was already 73 years old, and the architect visited this church every day. While he was walking absentmindedly between the streets of Girona and Bailén, he was hit by a tram. Antonio lost consciousness.
The unkempt appearance of the tramp led people astray. The cab drivers did not want to take him to the medical department, fearing that they would not receive money. In the end, the great architect was taken to a hospital for the poor, where he received the most primitive care. Only on July 8th was he identified by the chaplain of the Sagrada Familia Cathedral, but any treatment was already useless.
On June 10, 1926, the genius died. They buried him in the crypt of the temple, which he did not have time to complete.

Gaudi's Magic Houses are located primarily in Barcelona, as this is where Antoni Gaudi lived and worked. Of course, Gaudi was not the only one who created modern Barcelona. The city saw many talented architects during a relatively short period of time called the Catalan Renaissance. In addition to Gaudi's Barcelona, there is also modern Barcelona, Gothic Barcelona, and the "Spanish Village" district, which embodies the styles of all Spanish provinces, and the famous Rambla - the district of old Barcelona. But Gaudi's Barcelona is something special, incomparable. The thirteen objects (not always buildings) built by Gaudí in Barcelona give it its originality and charm and are an irresistible attraction for tourists.

At the beginning of Gaudí's independent work, his first, richly decorated, early Art Nouveau projects were built:

“Stylist Twins” - elegant House of Vicens (Barcelona)

Quirky El Capricho (mood) (Comillas, Cantabria).

And also the compromise pseudo-baroque House of Calvet (Barcelona) - the only building recognized and loved by the townspeople during his lifetime (by the way, the house was built without a single load-bearing wall inside).

Gaudi was extremely uncommunicative and even withdrawn. He's even cruel to people. Gaudí never married. Since childhood, he suffered from rheumatism, which prevented him from playing with other children, but did not interfere with long solitary walks, to which he had a passion all his life. He did not recognize luxury and wealth, ate and dressed haphazardly. - when it concerned him personally. But at the same time he built luxurious buildings. There were no records left from Gaudí; he had no close friends. And many of the circumstances of his life have still not been clarified. Calvet House inside:

Decisive for the flourishing of the young architect was his meeting with Eusebi Güell. Gaudí later became a friend of Güell. This textile magnate, the richest man in Catalonia, no stranger to aesthetic insights, could afford to order any dream, and Gaudi received what every creator dreams of: freedom of expression without regard to the budget. Palace Guell:

A great architect who almost never worked with drawings, whose work was based on scrupulous mathematical calculations, a subversive of authority and a trendsetter who created outside of established styles. His main tools were imagination, intuition and... mental calculations. You could say he was the Einstein of architecture. Palace Güell, view from the roof:

Having gained financial "independence", Gaudí goes beyond the dominant historical styles within the eclecticism of the 19th century, declaring war on the straight line and forever moving into the world of curved surfaces to form his own, unmistakably recognizable style.

Antonio Gaudí i Cornet was born on June 25, 1852 in the small town of Reus, near Tarragona, in Catalonia. He was the fifth and youngest child in the family of boilermakers Francesc Gaudí i Serra and his wife Antonia Cornet i Bertrand. It was in his father’s workshop, as the architect himself admits, that the sense of space awakened in him.

Gaudi's Barcelona is a fairy tale embodied in architecture. Onlookers mill around in front of his residential buildings. It is strange that people live in these tower houses, and not fairy-tale creatures; that under these raised roofs, behind these curved facades with swollen balconies, everyday life goes on. It is even more difficult to imagine that every detail of this excessively lush decor carries not only an aesthetic, but also a functional load. That is, it was created not only to amaze the imagination: rich Barcelonans are accustomed not only to luxury, but also to comfort.

With the completion of the palace, Antoni Gaudí ceased to be an anonymous builder, quickly becoming the most fashionable architect in Barcelona, soon becoming an "almost unaffordable luxury". For the bourgeoisie of Barcelona, he built houses one more unusual than the other: a space that is born and develops, expanding and moving, like living matter.

Mosaic ceiling in the house:

Gaudi is a genius far ahead of his time. A phenomenon that defies explanation, much less imitation. Unique, incomparable, unthinkable.

But his main creation, the pinnacle of his art and the outlet of his heart was the Expiatory Temple of the Holy Family (Sagrada Familia). In 1906, his father died, and six years later, his ill-health niece, his last close person, died. Gaudi completely closed himself off and made this temple his atoning sacrifice. Imagine, all the money that he earned as the architect of the temple, Gaudi invested in the construction itself. He worked for free for many years, not considering himself to have the right to appropriate people’s money, and the temple was built with donations from rich and poor Barcelonans.

Gaudí did not hope to complete the Sagrada Familia during his lifetime. He dreamed of finishing the East Facade of the Nativity so that his own generation could see the fruits of his efforts. By doing this, he obliged future builders to continue working. He managed to complete the chapel, the apse (the semicircular part of the building), a section of the monastery, and part of the vestibule<Розарий>and a parochial school. The three bell towers of the Nativity façade were completed after his death. He left detailed drawings, 1:10 scale models, and design sketches so that his followers would not deviate from his plan. But continuing construction turned out to be difficult: it required huge funds. It was decided to mothball it during the civil war. Several times the Temple was under threat of destruction.

The school was destroyed, Gaudi's workshop was destroyed. The controversy over whether to continue or freeze the work was a logical consequence of the authorities’ attitude towards the work of the great Catalan. The work either progressed in full swing, or was curtailed due to lack of funds. But then His Majesty the people intervened. Money continued to flow into the Temple Construction Fund. On average, construction costs three million dollars annually.

This year, Barcelona's Jews donated five million. But even with a stable influx of funds, construction is designed for at least another 65 years, although no one can name the exact date. Gaudi couldn’t name her either. When asked when the Sagrada Familia would be completed, he replied: “My customer is in no hurry.”

Now the boom of a tower crane hangs over the Temple. The interior is a huge construction site: concrete mixers, iron structures, reinforced concrete blocks, plaster decorative parts, column capitals. The most advanced technologies and materials that Gaudi did not know are used. Computer analysis confirms the accuracy of his calculations, which he checked using sandbags suspended from a model. Skeptics doubt that the Sagrada Familia will ever be completed and that Gaudi's secret plan was to make its construction eternal.

Gaudi is considered to be part of Catalan Art Nouveau. He is its brightest representative. But it does not completely fit into any architectural movement. With the same success it can be attributed to the Moorish Baroque, Neoclassicism or Neo-Gothic. But he chose to arbitrarily mix all architectural styles, creating his own eclecticism. What really sets it apart from everyone else is the connection between architecture and nature.

Gaudi died when he was hit by the first tram to be launched at the foot of Mount Tibidabo. He was almost 74 years old. He probably could have survived, but the cab drivers refused to take an unkempt, unknown old man without money or documents to the hospital, fearing non-payment for the trip. Gaudí was eventually taken to a hospital for the poor, and no one could recognize the famous architect until his friends found him the next day. When they tried to transport him to the best hospital, he refused, saying that “his place is here, among the poor.” Gaudí died on the third day, June 10, 1926. In 1926, Antonio Gaudi, the greatest architect of the 20th century, whose creations now and forever defined the appearance of Barcelona, was buried in the crypt of the cathedral he had not completed.

Gaudi deifies nature. His church spiers are topped with sheaves of cereals and ears of corn, the window arches are topped with baskets of fruit, and bunches of grapes hang from the facades; drainpipes writhe in the shape of snakes and reptiles; the chimneys are twisted with snails, the grates are forged in the shape of palm leaves. But Gaudi does something that no one had dared to do before: he transfers the laws of nature to architecture. He managed to achieve the continuous fluidity of architectural forms, accessible only to living nature. He uses parabolic floors and inclined tree-like columns. There is not a single straight line in his projects, just as there is none in nature.

Catalan modernism, the impetus for which was, in particular, Antoni Gaudi, arose on the powerful crest of national resistance. Catalonia did not always belong to Spain. It became Spanish as a result of the royalist marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, the one who sent Columbus on his voyage and expelled the Jews from Spain. Over the next three centuries, Catalonia gradually lost its privileges and increasingly became a Spanish province. The proud Catalans could not accept this. They strongly opposed Spanish cultural expansion. The explosion of national self-awareness affected all spheres of public life: music, literature, painting, sculpture, architecture, theater, language. Eventually, the Catalans regained their language, Catalan, and achieved autonomous governance. Barcelona has become the most beautiful city in the country.

By the way, at the dawn of his activity, Gaudí was associated with workers' trade unions. The labor movement in industrial Catalonia, especially in the textile industry, was most intense. Gaudí's first major project was the creation of a workers' town in Montaro. Subsequently, Gaudi moved away from the labor movement, became a devout Catholic and erected Christian symbols not only on cathedrals and residential buildings, but also on purely utilitarian buildings.

Among Gaudí's residential buildings, the apartment building that went down in history under the name "Casa Mila" is especially famous. This house was popularly nicknamed "Pedrera" ("Kamenyuka"), "Wasp's Nest" or, even worse, "Meat Pie".

But if, of all the modern buildings in the world, only this one remained in the world, it would personify modernity in its perfect form. This six-story undulating building wraps around the intersection of Grazia Boulevard and Provenza Street. Visitors are allowed there as if they were in a museum.

Anticipating the flow of visitors, Gaudi turned the roof into a terrace and at the same time an observation deck. He placed stables in the basement - this was a prototype of a garage. He was the first to use a ramp (lifting from floor to floor) for horses and carriages - this principle was later used in multi-story parking lots.

A few months after Gaudi's death, the young Japanese sculptor Kenji Imai visited Barcelona. He was so shocked by the Temple that he decided to create a cathedral in Nagasaki based on studying the works of Gaudí. Since then, the Japanese pilgrimage to Barcelona began.

There are a lot of tourists here from other countries :)

Gaudi's magical houses inspire many people

Based on materials from http://www.uadream.com/tourism/europe/Spain/element.php?ID=20873