[ k o t o n o g o ]: GAUDI major WORKS

Casa Vicens is a family residence in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain), designed by Antoni Gaudí and built for industrialist Manuel Vicens. It was Gaudí's first important work. It was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Works of Antoni Gaudí" in 2005.

It was built in the period 1883-1889 and is located at Carrer de les Carolines 24, in the Gràcia  district of Barcelona. The site was small (smaller today after the  widening of the street) compared to similar structures in the area.  Nevertheless, the house is sizeable, measuring some 12,500 square feet  (1,160 m2) on four levels.

This early work exhibits several influences, most notably the Moorish (or Mudéjar)  influence, particularly evident at the top. The house is constructed of  undressed stone, rough red bricks, and colored ceramic tiles in  checkerboard and floral patterns. The owner, Manuel Vicens, was the  owner of a brick and tile factory, so the ceramic tiles pay tribute to  his employment. The yellow, zinnia-flowered tile, designed by Gaudí, was manufactured by Vicens.

The plan is asymmetrical with protruding gables and buttresses.  Galleries project even farther at the top. Rooftop towers are  reminiscent of Moorish architecture.

Because the house is a private residence, its interior cannot be  visited. Nevertheless, the house is generally open to "neighbours and  citizens" on Saint Rita's Day, May 22.

Sagrada Família

Background

Sagrada familia at night

The Basilica of the Sagrada Família was the inspiration of a Catalan bookseller, Josep Maria Bocabella, founder of Asociación Espiritual de Devotos de San José (Spiritual Association of Devotees of St. Joseph). After a visit to the Vatican in 1872, Bocabella returned from Italy with the intention of building a church inspired by that at Loreto. The crypt of the church, funded by donations, was begun 19 March, 1882, on the festival of St. Joseph, to the design of the architect Francisco de Paula del Villar, whose plan was for a Gothic revival church of a standard form.Antoni Gaudí began work on the project in 1883. On 18 March, 1883 Villar retired from the project, and Gaudí assumed responsibility for its design, which he changed radically.

Construction

On the subject of the extremely long construction period, Gaudí is said to have remarked, "My client is not in a hurry." When Gaudí died in 1926, the basilica was between 15 and 25 per cent complete. After Gaudí's death, work continued under the direction of Domènec Sugrañes i Gras until interrupted by the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Parts of the unfinished basilica and Gaudí's models and workshop were destroyed during the war by Catalan anarchists.  The present design is based on reconstructed versions of the lost plans  as well as on modern adaptations. Since 1940 the architects Francesc Quintana, Isidre Puig Boada, Lluís Bonet i Gari and Francesc Cardoner have carried on the work. The illumination was designed by Carles Buigas. The current director and son of Lluís Bonet, Jordi Bonet i Armengol, has been introducing computers into the design and construction process since the 1980s. Mark Burry of New Zealand serves as Executive Architect and Researcher. Sculptures by J. Busquets, Etsuro Sotoo and the controversial Josep Subirachs decorate the fantastical façades.

The central nave vaulting was completed in 2000 and the main tasks since then have been the construction of the transept vaults and apse. As of 2006, work concentrated on the crossing and supporting structure for the main tower of Jesus Christ as well as the southern enclosure of the central nave, which will become the Glory façade.

Construction status

One projection anticipates construction completion around 2026, the  centennial of Gaudí's death—while the project's information leaflet  estimates a completion date in 2017, accelerated by additional funding  from visitors to Barcelona following the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Computer-aided design  technology has been used to accelerate construction of the building,  which had previously been expected to last for several hundred years,  based on building techniques available in the early 20th century. Current technology allows stone to be shaped off-site by a CNC milling machine, whereas in the 20th century, the stone was carved by hand.

In 2008, some renowned Catalan architects advocated a halt to construction, to respect Gaudí's original designs, which, although they were not  exhaustive and were partially destroyed, have been partially  reconstructed in recent years. A 2010 exhibition, Gaudí Unseen, Completing La Sagrada Familia at the German Architecture Museum, Frankfurt am Main, describes the current construction methods and future plans for the Sagrada Familia.

AVE Tunnel

On 26 March, 2010, the Ministry of Public Works of Spain (Ministerio de Fomento) began constructing an AVE tunnel beneath the center of Barcelona, saying the project poses no risk to the church. Project engineers and architects disagreed, saying there was no  guarantee that the tunnel would not affect the stability of the  building.

Subsequently, the Board of the Sagrada Família (Patronat de la  Sagrada Família) and the neighborhood association AVE pel Litoral  initiated a campaign against the AVE. In October 2010, the tunnel boring machine reached the church underground under the location of the building's principal façade.

natifity FACADE 

Turtle at the base of column

Constructed between 1894 and 1930, the Nativity façade was the first  façade to be completed. Dedicated to the birth of Jesus, it is decorated  with scenes reminiscent of elements of life. Characteristic of Gaudí's  naturalistic style, the sculptures are ornately arranged and decorated  with scenes and images from nature, each a symbol in their own manner.  For instance, the three porticos are separated by two large columns, and  at the base of each lies a turtle or a tortoise (one to represent the  land and the other the sea; each are symbols of time as something set in  stone and unchangeable). In contrast to the figures of turtles and  their symbolism, two chameleons can be found at either side of the  façade, and are symbolic of change.

The façade faces the rising sun to the northeast, a symbol for the  birth of Christ. It is divided into three porticos, each of which  represents a theological virtue (Hope, Faith and Charity). The Tree of Life rises above the door of Jesus in the portico of Charity. Four towers complete the façade and are each dedicated to a Saint (Matthias the Apostle, Saint Barnabas, Jude the Apostle, and Simon the Zealot).

Nativity facade

Originally, Gaudí intended for this façade to be polychromed, for each archivolt  to be painted with a wide array of colours. He wanted every statue and  figure to be painted. In this way the figures of humans would appear as  much alive as the figures of plants and animals.

Gaudí chose this façade to embody the structure and decoration of the  whole church. He was well aware that he would not finish the church and  that he would need to set an artistic and architectural example for  others to follow. He also chose for this façade to be the first on which  to begin construction and for it to be, in his opinion, the most  attractive and accessible to the public. He believed that if he had  begun construction with the Passion Façade, one that would be hard and  bare (as if made of bones), before the Nativity Façade, people would  have withdrawn at the sight of it.