Casa Batlló. Casa Batllo. Casa Batlló - photo

In the famous city of contrasts, namely in Barcelona, is located one of the most unusual apartment buildings in the whole world. It invariably draws the attention of tourists in cars or sightseeing buses. The general views of the guests of the capital rush to the house of the Batllo. As a rule, what you see shocked visiting people. This building is one of the brightest creations of the greatest architect of Catalonia - Antonio Gaudi.

General information

Casa Batllo is a masterpiece of architectural art. It is located on Paseo de Gracia, house 43. Barcelona is famous for this landmark. Near it there are always crowded numerous visitors of the capital, who try to capture the object from all angles. As a rule, they have to take quite comical poses for this. Casa Batlló (how to get to it, tell any local resident) does not remain without attention even with the onset of the night. This is due to the fact that in the dark the original lighting of the structure is included. Thus, the house becomes an even more fabulous and fantastic place. You can reach the building by bus. The stop on which to exit is called Casa Batllo - Fundacio Antoni Tapies. You can get there by metro. Exit in this case at the station Passeig de Gracia.

Historical background

There is practically no information on the construction of the facility itself. It is only known that the house belonged to Josep Balio-i-Kasanovus. In just two years the builders erected an ordinary, unremarkable structure. The entrepreneur, who at that time was making money on the textile business, came up with how to make money from this. He invested his finances in real estate, after which he received a profit from the rental of housing. At the beginning of the 20th century, Kasanovas made an important decision. The structure was located near the house of Amelieu, made in a modernist style. The appearance of the building was clearly inferior to the latter, and the entire structure looked unprofitable against its background. This is not happy with the owner. He set out to leave his own mark in history. Antonio Gaudi at that time had already gained fame. It was to him that the industrialist submitted an application for a complete reconstruction of the building. At the time of receiving this order the famous architect worked on the park of Güell. The owner was so unhappy with the appearance of his building that he wanted to demolish it and start building a new structure from scratch. Nevertheless, Gaudí's Antonio Casa Batllo was saved. The architect in detail has calculated all nuances of the future project and has begun work on reconstruction of a structure.

Design processing. Facade part. Features of reconstruction

In order to create another masterpiece, Gaudi decided to completely change the facade of the building. Nevertheless, it was planned to maintain the old structure of the structure. Experts believe that the Casa Batlló in Barcelona is a new direction in the work of a talented architect. This proves once again that in his creations not only unique design, but also detailed calculations are of great importance. Two years it took Antonio Gaudi to completely rework both facades of the building. Anyone who strolls or drives along the Paseo de Gracia street can see one of them. From the courtyard of the house there is an opportunity to see the second facade. He, too, underwent a complete reconstruction. The facade is designed in accordance with the design of the Casa Batlló.

Courtyard. Features of reconstruction

In order to create an amazing courtyard, the architect used an unusual idea. The idea was to unite two light mines. Antonio Gaudi once again confirms his genius by the implementation of this decision. The combination of light mines made it possible to create not only an amazing courtyard, which is better to see with own eyes, than to read his laudatory description. This design has a number of advantages. This decision led to a significant improvement in ventilation in the building. It also contributed to a good level of illumination of all rooms. The architect reduced the size of the windows from the bottom up. Thanks to this, the light in the courtyard is distributed evenly. To achieve a fantastic effect, Gaudi used unusual colors of the cladding. Below there is a white one, which makes a smooth transition to blue, and then - to a bright azure spectrum. This unique design was executed not only thanks to the genius's irrepressible imagination, but also through detailed project planning.

Reconstruction of individual elements

The facades and the courtyard are far from the only parts of the building in which the architect decided to bring change. It was also planned to reconstruct the first floor and the mezzanine. Antoni Gaudi was talented in everything. He did not only reconstruct the building, but also created suitable unique furniture for the premises. Unfortunately, at present it is not possible to see her in the house. It is kept in the museum of the great architect, who is in the park of Güell. All these measures have been taken for security reasons. Earlier, any guest of the capital could visit it for free. At that time, to implement Gaudí's grandiose plans, a huge budget was required. The architect completed the attic of the building, the basement, and also an amazing terrace on the roof. Having risen on it, every guest of Barcelona can see with his own eyes the masterpieces of the great architect.

Unique details of the structure

The architect has developed many unique elements that make up the Casa Batlló. Each of them was created by the best masters of that time. Jouzep Pelegri worked on the stained glass windows. Blacksmith Badia was responsible for the manufacture of forged parts. To these craftsmen, the architect asked for help more than once. The masters from Manacor worked on the creation of facing details for the construction. Gaudi was very sensitive to every order. He preferred to trust the elements he developed only to recognized professionals in this field. The architect, reconstructing the Casa Batllo, should have felt confident that the masters fully understood his concrete intent. Thus, original masterpieces of art were created, which were admired not only by contemporaries, but also by descendants.

First impressions of the construction

Casa Batllo, whose photo is presented in the article, you can learn from afar over the vague lines of decorative elements. The facade of the building overlooking the Paseo de Gracia street is practically devoid of any symmetry. At the initial stage, it may seem that the structure consists entirely of skulls and bones of giant people. Due to this similarity, immediately after the fulfillment of the order Kasanova, the locals nicknamed the building "House of Bones". The owner's hopes were fully justified, and the appearance of his possessions greatly exceeds the modernist style of the building of Amelie. The last building just fades against the backdrop of the Casa Batlló. It is not possible to surpass the talent of a brilliant architect. It's not just his unique plans, but also a special vision of Gaudi.

Unusual house today

If someone from contemporaries tried to create something like this, they would not take it seriously and, among other blames, they accused of plagiarism. Brilliant creators are not considered to be compared, their creations can only be admired. The windows on the first floor are like fabulous. They have a variety of irregular shapes, seem soft, like plasticine. Nevertheless, this is a deceptive impression. Absolutely all the components are made of strong stones, over which the carver worked diligently. After visitors finish admiring the first floor, it seems to them that the structure "goes to the sky." Although, in fact, the house of the Batlo is relatively small. This is a kind of optical illusion, designed by a talented architect. It was created thanks to a mosaic, which consists of a broken tile of various colors. The roof of the "House of Bones" looks like it was borrowed from another building. Crowns a unique structure of the turret with a cross, which is located not in the center, but is shifted to the left side.