Parc Guell: the biggest attraction in Bracelona
Barcelona is well known as a modern megapolis. This is the city where Antonio Guadi lived and left his most important pieces of work such as Park Guell.
Antonio Gaudi
Antonio Gaudi was a Catalan architect who was famous for his unique style and highly individualistic designs.
Gaudi was born in the small town of Reus, Tarragona (Spain). Now the towns Riudoms and Reus are competing about his place of birth, although most of his biographers believe that he was born in Reus. His parents were Fransesk Gaudí Serra and Antonia Cornet Bertran.
Gaudi studied architecture at the Higher Technical School of Architecture (La Escuela Técnico Superior de Arquitectura) in Barcelona from 1873 till 1877. Due to lack of money, along with studies, he worked as a draftsman and sometimes as a designer of furniture.
He graduated when he was 26 years old; his first profession was as a designer of interiors and decorator. One of the showcases that he designed for the famous nursery Casa Cornel in Barcelona was selected for the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1878.
Eusebi Güell, one of the respected employers of the textile industry in Catalonia was impressed by the elegance and modern style of the showcases, so he became one of Gaudi’s clients and benefactor. The Park Güell was named after him. In later years he devoted himself exclusively to building his masterpiece – the cathedral Sagrada Família (Holy Family).
About Park Guell
Güell Park is a park with architectural elements situated on the hill of El Caramel in Barcelona.
It is protected by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. It was originally part of the commercially unsuccessful housing area – the idea of Count Eusebi de Güell. This park was inspired by the British parks. It was later turned into a city garden. It is easy to come to the park, there are regular buses that drive there and moreover there are also special tourist buses that ride on that route. While the entrance to the park is free, entry into Gaudi’s house, where the furniture he designed is displayed, has to be paid.
What you can find in the park…
The project was made by Gaudi in his well recognizable style – wavy shapes similar to lava, in places similar to trees or in the form of Doric columns and stalactites, sometimes lavishly decorated with mosaics of broken tile. It can be seen as a special technique that is used primarily in the Catalan modernism, Trencadís. Area of the park is in accord with the natural terrain, steep slopes and ridges were left with steep side roads and caves, which were added to the natural environment.
If it sounds strange to you, do not worry, the park is cleverly designed to allow the peace and tranquility that it is expected to provide. The buildings, though very original and striking, are relatively unobtrusive. They have fantastic roof forms with unusual peaks. A key place in the park is the main terrace, surrounded by a long bench in the form of sea snakes.
Gaudi used a nude man sitting in clay to make the bench. Curves created in a number of enclaves create an atmosphere of friendship. A large passage at the highest point of the park offers the best view of Barcelona. It provides a panorama of the city, the Sagrada Família and Monjuik hill in the distance.