DESCRIPTION
HISTORY
UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE DESCRIPTION
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. This is embodied in an international treaty called the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972. What makes the concept of World Heritage exceptional is its universal application. World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located.
UNESCO World Heritage Site description are available for use under CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0 The UNESCO text has edited to focus on the Palau de Musica.
UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE DESCRIPTION – START
Works of Antoni Gaudí
Seven properties built by the architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926) in or near Barcelona testify to Gaudí’s exceptional creative contribution to the development of architecture and building technology in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These monuments represent an eclectic, as well as a very personal, style which was given free reign in the design of gardens, sculpture and all decorative arts, as well as architecture. The seven buildings are: Parque Güell; Palacio Güell; Casa Mila; Casa Vicens; Gaudí’s work on the Nativity façade and Crypt of La Sagrada Familia; Casa Batlló; Crypt in Colonia Güell.
Brief synthesis
The Works of Antoni Gaudí is a serial property consisting of seven buildings by the architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926) located in Barcelona and its surrounding areas. The property attests to the exceptional creative contribution of this architect to the development of architecture and construction technology in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The Park Güell, the Palau Güell, the Casa Milà-LaPedrera, the Casa Vicens, the Nativity Façade and the Crypt of the Sagrada Família, the Casa Batlló, and the Crypt of the Colònia Güell reflect an eclectic, very personal style to which Gaudí gave free rein in the field of architecture, as well as in the design of gardens, sculptures, and indeed all the arts.
The Works of Antoni Gaudí is an exceptional and outstanding creative contribution to the architectural heritage of modern times. His work is rooted in the particular character of the period, drawing on the one hand from traditional Catalan patriotic sources and on the other from the technical and scientific progress of modern industry. Gaudí’s work is a remarkable reflection of all these different facets of society and has a unique and singular character. In fact, his works are particularly associated with Modernisme, and in this sense, Gaudí can be regarded as the most representative and outstanding of the Modernistaarchitects.
Gaudí’s work is an exceptional creative synthesis of several 19th-century artistic schools, such as the Arts and Crafts movement, Symbolism, Expressionism, and Rationalism, and is directly associated with the cultural apogee of Catalonia. Gaudí also presaged and influenced many forms and techniques of 20th-century Modernism.
Criterion (i): The work of Antoni Gaudí represents an exceptional and outstanding creative contribution to the development of architecture and building technology in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Criterion (ii): Gaudí’s work exhibits an important interchange of values closely associated with the cultural and artistic currents of his time, as represented in el Modernisme of Catalonia. It anticipated and influenced many of the forms and techniques that were relevant to the development of modern construction in the 20th century.
Criterion (iv): Gaudí’s work represents a series of outstanding examples of the building typology in the architecture of the early 20th century, residential as well as public, to the development of which he made a significant and creative contribution.
Integrity
In general, all the component parts of the property enjoy a high degree of integrity and have retained a good relationship with their surroundings, whether urban or natural.
The Palau Güell, originally a family home, is now a cultural and tourist facility that retains its architectural integrity, form, and original decoration. The Park Güell is still used as a public park and green space, the purpose for which it was designed; now combining this with tourist and cultural use, while conserving the original features in their entirety. The Casa Milà-La Pedrera and the Casa Batlló, a pre-existing building remodelled by Gaudí, largely conserve their original design as apartment buildings, combining this in present day with other uses, such as offices and cultural and tourist facilities. Some monuments, such as the Casa Vicens, have retained over time both their physical appearance and their use as family homes. The Crypt of the church of the Colònia Güell is the only component to have been built as part of a larger project for the church. Subsequently, a temporary roof was erected over the Crypt. The present roof maintains the overall integrity of the Crypt as constructed by Gaudí. It also currently retains its use as the church of the Colònia Güell. In the case of the Sagrada Família, the integrity of the part built by Gaudí is intact. Furthermore, its current function as a church corresponds with the use originally intended, maintaining its religious symbolism and being a landmark for the city of Barcelona.
Authenticity
In general, all the buildings by Antoni Gaudí that are part of the serial property possess a fair degree of authenticity. Restoration works have reflected these qualities in the conditions for interventions.
The Palau Güell has undergone a general restoration to improve its conservation and enhance its cultural use, highlighting the authenticity of its architectural and decorative features. The Park Güell has undergone a variety of minor and structural restorations to repair damage caused by its intensive public use and exposure to the elements. The Casa Milà-La Pedrera has been comprehensively restored to improve its state of conservation, highlight certain unique features such as the roof, attics, “noble” floor, etc., and to make it more suitable for cultural uses and public visits. The Casa Vicens has undergone only minor conservation and restoration work. The Casa Batlló has been restored to improve its state of conservation and enhance its use for cultural purposes.
At the Crypt of the Colònia Güell, the structure has been restored, preserving and consolidating Gaudí’s Crypt, substituting the stairs and the deteriorating temporary roof. The new roof is based on modern design criteria and does not interfere with visibility from the surrounding area. There were also structural problems, due to the fact that the columns were not receiving the load they were originally designed to take. Nonetheless, the work by Gaudí in the Crypt has been correctly restored and has not lost its originality.
In the case of the Sagrada Família, the authenticity of the part built by Gaudí – the Nativity Façade and the Crypt – has been preserved in terms of its material, form, and workmanship.
Construction work on the church is continuing at the present time. The work originally performed by Gaudí must be considered in the context of the overall project that he himself had planned, which is now close to being brought to completion in accordance with the evidence and guidelines that have been drawn up and scientifically verified.
UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE DESCRIPTION – END
LECTURE NOTES
“Trencadís is a type of mosaic made with irregular shards of pottery, marble or glass that was wide spread in modernista architecture. Antoni Gaudí took the technique one step further by using ceramic and pottery rejects, plates and coffee cups, and gave the pieces their final shape with a hammer and pliers so that the pieces would fit together perfectly. Today we can still see original examples of Gaudí’s handiwork in nearly all his Barcelona landmarks: Park Güell, the Casa Batlló, La Pedrera and the Sagrada Família.” Barcelona Turisme
REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING
Barcelona Modernisme Route. https://rutadelmodernisme.com/en/
Barcelona Turisme. www.barcelonaturisme.com/wv3/en/
Hughes, Robert. Barcelona . Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. 1992.
Palau de la Música https://www.palaumusica.cat/en
Phillips, Jr, William D.; Rahn Phillips, Carla. A Concise History of Spain (Cambridge Concise Histories). Cambridge University Press, 2017.
Steves, Rick. Rick Steves Spain (Travel Guide). Avalon Travel, 2016.
UNESCO World Heritage Foundation. whc.unesco.org/
EDITOR AND LAST UPDATE
John William Bailly 27 June 2022
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