Barcelona Studio 2007: Gracia: Modern & Modernista

In our feildtrip class, 'Reading Barcelona', we visited the district of Barcelona known as Gracia. Gracia started out as its own town on the edge of the military zone that surrounded cramped Barcelona when it was confined to the ancient city walls. Those walls were mandated by the Spanish authorities in Madrid because they were afraid of BCN becoming too big and important. Confining BCN to that small space lead to the growth of Gracia and other fringe towns in the 18th century. In the late 19th century, the walls surrounding BCN came down and the city was allowed to expand. In this period Eixample was established. This plan was a series of large boulevards and apartment blocks that make this part of the city look smiler to Paris. This expansion led to the annexation to Gracia, connecting it to the old city by way of Passage de Gracia. This important boulevard is home to many stately apartment building, many built in the 'modernista' style. Two of Gaudi's most important works and located on this boulevard along with BCN's most upscale shopping. The first building we saw was Casa Vincens. An early work by Gaudi, it's tiled facade reflects some Muslim influence:

Next, we visited 5 plazas in the area, each surrounded by interesting architecture. Here are some pictures of my favorite modernista structures:

Apartments w/ interesting designs carved into the stucco

Gracia's old city hall, designed by an apprentice of Gaudi's

The detailed lobby tile work of one of the modernista apartments

Also on our walk, we visited a very modern library. I had seen this featured in a architecture magazine in the past and never thought i would ever see it in person. I have mixed feelings about it. It hugs the site really well, filling in the void left by its predecessor. However, it looks way off balance, almost as if it has started to crumble under its own weight. I know it was designed to look this way, but it is a bit disconcerting. You decide what you think: