Gaudi
Catalan modernist designer
Antoni Gaudí was a Spanish architect whose fantastical buildings define Barcelona's skyline.
His work—the unfinished Sagrada Família basilica, the undulating Casa Batlló, the mosaic-covered Park Güell—rejected straight lines for organic curves inspired by nature.
Gaudí is synonymous with Catalan modernisme and visionary architectural excess.
Gaudí's masterwork basilica
- organic formsShapes resembling living things
- mosaicInlaid pictorial arrangement
- undulatingMoving in waves
- facadesMisleading external appearances
hyperboloid · columns · vaults · naturalistic · sculptural · polychrome · ironwork · balconies
Curvilinear decorative movement, 1890s
- CatalanIberian Romance language
- BarcelonaCatalan capital city
- bourgeoisieCapitalist ownership class
- fin de siecleEnd-of-century weariness
decorative arts · craftsmanship · ornamental · regionalism · nationalist · avant-garde · industrialization · patron
From living matter
- biomorphicResembling living organism shapes
- nature-inspiredInfluenced by the environment
- flowingMoving continuously onward
- curvilinearCharacterized by curved lines
whimsical · fantastical · dreamlike · surreal · colorful · textured · handcrafted · irregular
Cultural arm of UN
- World HeritageUNESCO-protected significant sites
- unfinishedNot yet complete
- restorationReturning something to condition
- controversyProlonged public disagreement
tourism · icon · pilgrimage · visionary · genius · devout · reclusive · Catholic
Sagrada Familia
Gaudí's masterwork basilica
- organic formsShapes resembling living things
- mosaicInlaid pictorial arrangement
- undulatingMoving in waves
facades · hyperboloid · columns · vaults · naturalistic · sculptural · polychrome · ironwork · balconies · chimneys
Art Nouveau
Curvilinear decorative movement, 1890s
- CatalanIberian Romance language
- BarcelonaCatalan capital city
- bourgeoisieCapitalist ownership class
fin de siecle · decorative arts · craftsmanship · ornamental · regionalism · nationalist · avant-garde · industrialization · patron · commission
organic
From living matter
- biomorphicResembling living organism shapes
- nature-inspiredInfluenced by the environment
- flowingMoving continuously onward
curvilinear · whimsical · fantastical · dreamlike · surreal · colorful · textured · handcrafted · irregular · asymmetrical
UNESCO
Cultural arm of UN
- World HeritageUNESCO-protected significant sites
- unfinishedNot yet complete
- restorationReturning something to condition
controversy · tourism · icon · pilgrimage · visionary · genius · devout · reclusive · Catholic · death
- ArchitectsFrank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry, I.M. Pei, Christopher Wren, Brunelleschi
- Spanish ArtGoya, Picasso, Velazquez, Dali, El Greco
- Spanish Cultureflamenco, paella, Goya, tapas, bullfighting
- CataloniaBarcelona, Girona, Tarragona, Catalan, independence movement
- Hispanic StudiesSpanish literature, Spanish language, Cervantes, Don Quixote, Spanish drama
- BarcelonaLa Sagrada Familia, Sagrada Familia, Las Ramblas, Born, FC Barcelona
Gaudiminimalist
One favoring bare essentials
International Style · Bauhaus · stark · austere · rectilinear
Gaudifunctionalism
Theory emphasizing purposes and roles
rationalism · industrialism · standardization · mass production · geometric