Barcelona

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Casa Batlló

Passeig de Gràcia 43

For many people the Casa Batlló is the most telling example of Gaudí’s pre-eminence over his Modernista contemporaries; the comparison is easy, since it sits in the same block as masterworks by his two closest rivals, Puig i Cadafalch and Domènech i Montaner. Opinions differ on what the building’s remarkable façade represents, most particularly its polychrome shimmering walls, the sinister skeletal balconies and the humpbacked, scaley roof. Some maintain it shows the spirit of carnival, others insist it is a cove on the Costa Brava. The most popular theory, however, which takes into account the architect’s patriotic feelings, is that it depicts Sant Jordi and the dragon. The idea is that the cross on top of the building is the knight’s lance, the roof is the back of the beast, and the balconies below are the skulls and bones of its hapless victims.

Exploring the interior (at a cost) offers the best opportunity of understanding how Gaudí, who is sometimes considered the lord of the bombastic and overblown, was really the master of tiny details. Witness the ingenious ventilation in the doors and the amazing natural light reflecting off the azure walls of the inner courtyard, or the way in which the brass window handles are curved to fit precisely the shape of a hand. An apartment within Casa Batlló is now open to the public, as, more recently, have been the attic and the roof terrace: the whitewashed arched rooms of the top floor, which were originally used for washing and hanging clothes, are among the master’s most atmospheric spaces.

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