BARCELONA - MODERNISM OF GAUDI: LA PEDRERA

Today, 14th may, it's La Nit dels Museus (Night of Museums) in Barcelona, as I explained in a previous post. There are a lot of museums which are opening their doors for free tonight from 7pm to 1am.

However I have already decided which one I will try to visit tonight: La Casa Mila, also known as La Pedrera. I say "I will try" because it's probably I will have to line up a long queue.

Located in the central Passeig de Gràcia of Barcelona, the Casa Milà or La Pedrera is the culmination of Antoni Gaudí’s career, designed as a modernist building tailored to the new social needs, without forgetting his main source of inspiration: nature and organic forms.

Next I would like to show you some pictures of this fantastic building.

Built between 1906 and 1912, the Casa Milà occupies an entire corner of the Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona’s Eixample. Antoni Gaudí created an astonishing modernista style building, set out around two interior courtyards which provide the flats with ventilation and light

Curved, sinuous forms are the main elements inside and outside La Pedrera, like chimneys and balconies

The Casa Milà’s façade resembles the moving sea, the waves interacting with the seaweed-motifs on the wrought-iron balcony railings

The large stone blocks are a type of skin that covers the skeleton of a building free of load-bearing walls

Three areas are open to the public: the dreamlike attic space, with is brick catenary arches; the rooftop, where the chimneys recall the silhouette of warriors rising up among the dunes of the desert; and finally a period apartment

Nice view of La Pedrera at night

In the end, and in spite of the queue, I would enter La Casa Milà. Clicking on the next link, you will find pictures of what impressed me most this visit to La Casa Milà or La Pedrera, as it's popularly known. Next, a sample of what I would see on the rooftop.

Chimneys on the rooftop of Casa Milà, popularly known as La Pedrera

Other Gaudí masterpieces you can visit in Barcelona are:

• Sagrada Familia
• Casa Batlló
• Palau Güell
• Park Güell
• Colònia Güell
• Casa Vicens
• Col·legi de les Teresianes
• Casa Calvet
• Torre Bellesguard and Viaduct
• Pabellons Güell

Besides, other modernist buildings you can visit in Barcelona are:

• Hospital de Sant Pau
• Palau de la Música Catalana
• La Boqueria
• Casa Fuster
• Casa Terrades or "Casa de les Punxes"
• Casa Thomas
• Casa Amatller
• Casa Lleó i Morera
• Casa Martí (Restaurant els Quatre Gats)

I also would like to give you some useful information in case you want to visit this wonderful building:

- Address: Provença, 261-265
- Web site: www.fundaciocaixacatalunya.org
- How to get there:

• Metro: L3 and L5, stop Diagonal.
• Bus: 7, 16, 17, 22, 24 and 28.
• FGC: stop Provença.
• Barcelona Bus Turístic: stop Pg. de Gràcia-La Pedrera.

- Opening time:

• From November to February: daily from 9am to 6.30pm.
• From march to october: daily from 9am to 8pm.
• January 1st & 6th, December 25th & 26th closed.

La Pedrera is one of the most important modernist buildings in Barcelona. Of course, it isn't the only one, as I showed in a previous post called Modernism Route. In that post you will find links to other posts about La Sagrada Familia, perhaps the most impressive building in Barcelona and one of the beautiful places in Barcelona.