Known for his free-flowing designs based on nature, Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí redefined architecture in 19th-century Barcelona with masterpieces like the church of the Sagrada Familia and Casa Batlló.
Renowned for his bizarre and eccentric marvels, Catalonian architect Antoni Gaudí redefined what it meant to be modern. His surrealist works were inspired by Victorian, neo-gothic, and even Oriental art forms, but it was his love of nature — its free-flowing lines and phantasmagoric structures — that defined his inimitable style.
From the still-in-progress spires of the towering Church of Sagrada Familia, to the houses seemingly made of candy in Parc Güell, Gaudí adorned his beloved city of Barcelona in his signature style. Incredibly proud of his Catalan heritage, he is widely considered the father of the Catalan Modernista style.
Salvador Dalí loved him; Picasso hated him. But whatever you think of Antoni Gaudí, he’s not called “God’s Architect” for nothing. He’s even in the running for sainthood.
Casa Batlló in Barcelona, Spain. A remodel of a previously built house, it was redesigned in 1904 by Gaudí.Getty Images The local name for the building is Casa dels Ossos (House of Bones) because of its skeletal look.Flickr Inside Casa Batlló.Wikimedia Commons The Casa Batlló atrium in detail. Gaudí was known for his flamboyant use of color. Flickr Part of Casa Batlló's roof. Angus McIntyre/CC4.0/Disoriented.net More roof detail.Getty Images Exterior of Casa Batlló. Flickr Park Güell, Barcelona. With urbanization in mind, Eusebi Güell commissioned Antoni Gaudí to design this privatized park system composed of gardens and architectural elements. Fshoq Stairway in Park Güell. Wikimedia Commons Benches at Park Güell. Gaudí was fortunate enough to have almost unlimited cash at his disposal because the city of Barcelona in the late 19th and early 20th centuries prioritized art and architecture in order to show off the new wealth of its growing upper class.Wikimedia Commons Reptile in Park Güell. Wikimedia Commons A fountain in Park Güell depicting a snake and the Catalan coat of arms. Wikimedia Commons Exterior of Casa Milà, the last private residence designed by Gaudí between 1906 and 1912.Wikimedia Commons View from below Casa Milà.Wikimedia Commons Chimneys atop Casa Milà for the wealthy Catalan Milà family. PXHere Inner courtyard area of Casa Milà. Wikimedia Commons Parabolic arches inside Casa Milà. Wikimedia Commons A view down on Casa Vicens, a modernist building that is considered to be Gaudí's first major project. It was built between 1883 and 1885, although Gaudí drew up the initial plans between 1878 and 1880 during his "Orientalist period."Wikimedia Commons Exterior detail of Casa Vicens.Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons Interior sitting porch in Casa Vicens. Flickr Exterior gates at Palau Güell, or Güell Palace, the mansion designed by Gaudí for the industrial tycoon Eusebi Güell. It was built between 1886 and 1888. beckstei/Flickr Ceiling detail inside Palau Güell. Flickr "Room of lost steps" in Palau Güell. Wikimedia Commons The central oriel and balconies of Casa Calvet (1899) by Antoni Gaudí for a textile manufacturer. It served as both a commercial property, in the basement and on the ground floor, and a residence.Flickr Exterior view of the Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família, or the Temple of the Holy Family. This is widely considered Gaudí's Magnum Opus, and it is still under construction almost 150 years later. This photo has digitally removed the construction cranes that still adorn the outside of the church.Wikimedia Commons Gaudí devoted more than 40 years of his life to designing and building Sagrada Familia — and as a very religious man, he accepted no money for the job. Today, the church is being built almost exclusively on donations.Flickr The breathtaking interior of Sagrada Familia.Getty Images The nave of Sagrada Familia illuminated. Wikimedia Commons Close up features of the facade on the church Sagrada Familia.Getty Images Ceiling detail inside the nave of the Sagrada Familia, in which Gaudí designed the columns to resemble trees and branches.Wikimedia Commons View from the Sagrada Familia's Papal seating area. Pope Benedict XVI consecrated the temple on Nov. 7, 2010, and proclaimed it a minor basilica.StuckInCustoms/Flickr Star of the Virgin Mary atop Sagrada Familia. Wikimedia Commons
33 Photos Of The Whimsical Works Of Antoni Gaudí, The Eccentric Architect Who Pushed Spain Into The Modernist Era View GalleryThe Early Life And Influences Of Antoni Gaudí
Born on June 25, 1852, Antoni Gaudí i Cornet came from a long line of artisans; coppersmiths, boilermakers, and lathe operators. He was the fifth and last of his parents' children — and one of only three that lived to adulthood. He suffered from poor health his whole life, dealing with an arthritic illness and the depressive states that accompany chronic pain.
Nevertheless, Antoni Gaudí was an observant and curious child. When he was old enough to work, he got a job as a bellows boy in a steam factory blowing on the fire under the steam boiler. He worked every day of the week.
Once, his boss caught him reading a book at work, but instead of scolding him, asked him what the book was about. It was a book on mathematics — and his boss promised to bring him more.
Wikimedia CommonsAntoni Gaudí, Catalan architect, designer, and visionary.
Historians believe young Gaudí's boss may have encouraged the family to let the boy study instead of work, and they seemed to agree. It was incredibly rare that a son of a tradesman like Gaudí would attend school, but he did. He studied natural science, Euclidian geometry, and Newtonian mechanics.
Though Gaudí was independent, stubborn, and didn't necessarily appreciate the disciplined life of a scholar, he completed his general education. He'd always loved and appreciated architecture, so he enrolled in the Barcelona Architecture School (BAS).
Upon his graduation from BAS, the school's director, Elies Rogent, stated of Gaudí, "We have given this academic title either to a fool or a genius. Time will show."
And it did.
Gaudí's Architecture Takes Barcelona By Storm
The year he graduated from architecture school, Gaudí designed a showcase for a glove shop. What seemed like an innocuous job turned out to be the start of his wildly successful career, as the case was subsequently shown at the World's Fair in Paris.
From there, the city of Barcelona hired him to design some lampposts for the Plaça Reial. Just these small projects enticed who would become one of Gaudí's most loyal patrons — local entrepreneur Eusebi Güell. The very same who later commissioned Gaudí to design Güell Estate, Park, and Palace.
Gaudí's first residential project was Casa Vicens, built between 1883 and 1885. Financier Manuel Vicens commissioned it as a family summer home.
Wikimedia CommonsAntoni Gaudí (in the background) with his father (center), his niece Rosa, and doctor Santaló on a visit to Montserrat in 1904.
On the precipice of fame, Gaudí took on his most noted project, Barcelona's church of the Sagrada Família, in 1883. Architect Francisco de Paula del Villar made the initial proposal for the structure, but Gaudí took over a year to do the planning. He scrapped his original neo-Gothic plan due to monetary constraints and went with a more unconventional design.
Today, the basilica's iconic exterior has intricate spires and detailed sculptural elements depicting moments in the life of Jesus Christ. Inside, there are over four dozen tree-trunk-shaped columns that branch into a ceiling of stained glass windows in electric hues. It is, without a doubt, one of the most dazzling basilicas in all of Europe.
It was Antoni Gaudí's Magnum Opus — and it isn't even completed yet. Indeed, Gaudí intended for the church to continue long after he died, and 2022 marks the church's 140th year of construction.
Antoni Gaudí's Sad Final Years
PexelsThe church of Sagrada Familia.
Gaudí designed many amazing buildings during his lifetime; the Casa Milà, Casa Batlló, Casa Calvet, and others. However, he dedicated 40 years of his life — the last 12, exclusively — to Sagrada Familia. He had a workshop there and even built a school for the children of the construction workers.
He also accepted no money for the job. Gaudí devoted his last years to the church and his new, great vocation: serving God through architecture. This led to his nickname of "God's Architect." He even had a built-in response whenever asked about the basilica's completion, "My client is not in a rush."
However, his client may have been in a rush to meet his architect.
Antoni Gaudí was hit by a trolley on June 7, 1926, and lay clinging to life on the street. Passersby carried him to a hospital three blocks away. They believed him to be homeless due to his tattered clothing and unkempt beard.
Journalist Josep Pla wrote, "At the end, Gaudí truly was a poor man, and moreover, he looked the part."
Gaudí was able to tell the nurses his name before he passed out from the pain. But it didn't matter; as an architect — no matter how respected in his field — he was not a household name.
It took the chaplain of the Sagrada Familia to identify him as the visionary designer.
Gaudí died two days later; penniless, in a shabby hospital for those with little means. In his pockets, he had only a small handful of currants and peanuts — and a bible. In his head, the schematics for some of the most imaginative and fanciful buildings in the world.
Next, find out more about Brutalism, the architectural style bemoaned by artists everywhere. Then, read about a missing man who was found dead inside a papier-mâché dinosaur sculpture in Barcelona.
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