Art History
The Modernist Movement
The Lliga Regionaliste was a pro-Catalan political entity that entered the city council in 1901. The political leader of the Lliga Regionaliste was Puig i Caldafalch, an architect, who referred to Cerdà’s extension as “one of the worst horrors in the world” with the air of “vulgar America with the endless grid”. The party held an international competition to find a plan to link the extension with the newly annexed suburbs. A French architect named Leon Jaussely won with his plan to remodel the extension through the incorporation of monumental forms and scenic views into the grid pattern, otherwise known as the Plan de Enlaces, or the Plan of Connections. Jaussely’s plan introduced zoning techniques for the first time in Barcelona, and tried to introduce elements of the City Beautiful movement into the city. The plan’s main focus was to transform Barcelona into a capital of the Mediterranean.
The Lliga Regionaliste was a pro-Catalan political entity that entered the city council in 1901. The political leader of the Lliga Regionaliste was Puig i Caldafalch, an architect, who referred to Cerdà’s extension as “one of the worst horrors in the world” with the air of “vulgar America with the endless grid”. The party held an international competition to find a plan to link the extension with the newly annexed suburbs. A French architect named Leon Jaussely won with his plan to remodel the extension through the incorporation of monumental forms and scenic views into the grid pattern, otherwise known as the Plan de Enlaces, or the Plan of Connections. Jaussely’s plan introduced zoning techniques for the first time in Barcelona, and tried to introduce elements of the City Beautiful movement into the city. The plan’s main focus was to transform Barcelona into a capital of the Mediterranean.
Several important architects and designers of the time contributed to the monumental and historical architecture at the time that have now become tourist stops. The main architectural style of the time was Modernisme, which incorporates Catalan modernism in buildings through emphasis of the curve over the straight line, and the use of rich details. Antoni Gaudí designed the Casa Batlló in 1906, the Casa Milà in 1910, and his most famous work, the unfinished Sagrada Familia church. Domenech i Montaner designed the Palau de Música Catalana, the Hotel España, and the L’Hospital de Sant Pau. Puig i Cadaflach, the leader of the Lliga Regionaliste designed several buildings himself such as the Casa Martí and other houses and factories for prominent business families. [1]
The most recognizable construction from this period is the Barri Gótic, or the Gothic Quarter. The plans for the Barri Gótic spurred into action from start of the construction of the Via Laietana. The Via Laietana involved the demolition of many buildings from medieval Barcelona, particularly those from the Gothic style. In 1908, Antoni Gaudí advocated the conservation of the gothic remains to use around the city. Other architects and planners advocated the storage of these remains to be displayed in museums. The plan that actually came into construction was to recreate buildings in the gothic style in the Barri Gótic. Construction of the buildings in the Barri Gótic began in the late 1920s. As a result, the Barri Gótic was not a historic center of preserved medieval buildings, but rather it was a recreation of the past and a display of the power and wealth of the time. [2]
The extravagant and monumental architecture from this period came from wealthy and socially conservative industrialists, and can be seen by some as wasteful and eccentric. However, the general idea of the time was to transform Barcelona into the Capital of the Mediterranean, and given that Barcelona today is known for its rich cultural heritage and as a tourist destination, the architects at the time succeeded in transforming Barcelona.
References
[1] Barcelona Urban Development and Change. (2015, February 26). Retrieved February 26, 2015, from http://geographyfieldwork.com/BarcelonaUrbanDetail.htm
[2] Joan Ganau. (2006). Invention and Authenticity in Barcelona’s “Barri Gótic”. Future Anterior: Journal of Historic Preservation, History, Theory, and Criticism,3(2), 10-23. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/41201264
Media
[1] Jaussely's Plan in 1907. (n.d.). Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://www.citechaillot.fr/ressources/expositions_virtuelles/vegetal/03-theme03-sstheme01-doc01.html
[2] Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/spain-catalunya/casa_batllo_2_lge.jpg
[3] Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://www.globo-rojo.com/wp-content/uploads/sagradafamilia00002482731jpg.jpg
[1] Barcelona Urban Development and Change. (2015, February 26). Retrieved February 26, 2015, from http://geographyfieldwork.com/BarcelonaUrbanDetail.htm
[2] Joan Ganau. (2006). Invention and Authenticity in Barcelona’s “Barri Gótic”. Future Anterior: Journal of Historic Preservation, History, Theory, and Criticism,3(2), 10-23. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/41201264
Media
[1] Jaussely's Plan in 1907. (n.d.). Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://www.citechaillot.fr/ressources/expositions_virtuelles/vegetal/03-theme03-sstheme01-doc01.html
[2] Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/spain-catalunya/casa_batllo_2_lge.jpg
[3] Antoni Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia. Retrieved March 14, 2015, from
http://www.globo-rojo.com/wp-content/uploads/sagradafamilia00002482731jpg.jpg