IN PHOTOS: See The Stunning Use of Ornamentation In Gaudi’s First Project, Casa Vicens
In the earliest work by this modern architect, remarkable use of decoration, expressed by traditional Catalan building techniques and in some rooms, exuberantly rendered in cardboard, makes this awe-inspiring home
Antoni Gaudi, the architect behind the famously opulent Casa Mila, Casa Battló and the Sagrada Familia Church was only 31 years old in 1883 when he was commissioned by the Spanish currency and stock broker, Manuel Vicens I Montaner to build a family summer home in Gràcia, a town that was then in the outskirts of Barcelona. The project was completed in 1885, and prefigured Gaudi’s moderne style, fully expressed in his later works.
This home has seen a number of incarnations throughout its history: as an apartment building with three units and then as a single family home. It went through an expansion in 1925 in the hands of Joan Baptista Serra de Martínez. Today, it is the 8th UNESCO World Heritage Site, and serves as a museum, a destination for lovers of architecture, restored with Architects Jose Antonio Martinez Lapeña, Elias Torres and David Garcia at the helm. It opened to the public in 2017, and re-opened with COVID-19 safety protocols last month.
Its restoration revealed traditional Catalan building techniques to articulate a confluence of styles: oriental, neoclassical, Gothic and Moorish that were conveyed in various materials ̶ glass, concrete, ceramics and pressed cardboard. “When I went to take the measurements of the plot, it was completely covered in yellow flowers, which are the ones I adopted as an ornamental theme for the ceramics,” Gaudi revealed. This home's astounding details exhibit Gaudi's alignment with the art nouveau penchant for articulating nature with the exuberant use of ornamentation with the use of papier mache to model vegetation, flora and fruits in this home, to awe-inspiring effect. It also illustrates manifestations of the Neo-Mudejar style, prevalent in the Iberian peninsula at the time.
Step inside the Casa Vicens through this gallery:
Casa Vicens
Casa Vicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Gaudi once said that ‘Architecture is the arrangement of the light.’ His wrought iron details in Casa Vicens illustrate this sentiment, casting strong shadows with poetic, sinuous lines on the ceramic surfaces.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
This wrought iron detail is reminiscent of ones found in another Gaudi landmark, Parque Guell.
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Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Guarding the home's windows are dragons, alluded to in the forms of these wrought iron details.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Exterior Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Loggia with Two Domes
In Casa Vicens, two domes are located in the loggia open to the garden. As in the wrought iron details in its exterior, palm leaves are also depicted in these domes, showing the fashion of depicting nature in architecture. This is a theme that is prevalent throughout the home.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Loggia with Two Domes
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Loggia with Two Domes
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Loggia with Two Domes
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, The Dining Room
In the dining room of Casa Vicens resides one of the most important collections of work by Francesc Torrescassana i Sallarés (Barcelona 1845-1918). They were commissioned by the building’s original owner Manel Vicens I Montaner.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, The Dining Room
The ceiling ornamentation in this room is rendered in painted cardboard.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, The Dining Room
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, The Dining Room
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Casa Vicens, The Dining Room
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Casa Vicens, Smoking Room
Part of this home's restoration process was the peeling off of the cream paint that covered the ceiling of the smoking room. This revealed the original blue color.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Smoking Room
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Casa Vicens, Bathroom
The Vicens family’s more private, intimate rooms are on the first floor: two bedrooms, a bath and a sitting room.
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Casa Vicens, Bathroom
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Casa Vicens, Bathroom
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Casa Vicens, Second Floor, Trompe-l’oeil Ceiling
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Casa Vicens, Second Floor, Trompe-l’oeil Ceiling
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Casa Vicens, Chapel of Sta. Rita
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Casa Vicens, New Staircase
Its new staircase showcases a complex geometry, a twisting volume. This architectural element is a contemporary addition, made in conjunction with the home's restoration. Architects at the helm of this project made sure that it respectfully created a dialogue with Gaudí's original design of the home.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, New Staircase
This view shows the new staircase in the same frame as the older but restored rooms in Casa Vicens.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Ornament and Details
Murals depicting tropical foliage are a recurring theme in this home, representing the architect's attempt at bringing nature indoors.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Ornament and Details
These sgraffito on the walls were used by Gaudi to represent nature. Employing this technique of ornamentation later became common in art nouveau buildings.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Ornament and Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Ornament and Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Ornament and Details
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Restoration
Scraping of the cream-colored paint which coated the smoking room's ceiling.
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Restoration
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Restoration
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Restoration
Photo Credit: @casavicens
Casa Vicens, Restoration
Photo Credit: @casavicens
All images by @casavicens
Casa Vicens is located in Carrer de les Carolines, 20, 08012, Barcelona, Spain.
Visit https://casavicens.org for more information.
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