Antoni Gaudi, An Architectural Genius or Madman?

By | May 28, 2019

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Bodegas Guell (1882). Source: (Wikipedia)

Antoni Gaudi was a very unique and talented architect. Most of his work was done in Barcelona. Not a lot is known about Gaudi as a person but his talent for architecture is quite well-known. His style was so unusual that there are many who have been fascinated at how he utilized colors, shapes, and materials. Then there were those who thought he was just a religious maniac with bad taste. His unfinished work of the Sagrada Familia was mocked at by Picasso and called one of the most hideous buildings in the world by George Orwell; but, for some reason, millions of tourists from all over the world come to see it.

Gaudi was associated with a very wealthy industrialist named Eusebi Guell. He set him up for life financially. Besides the Bodegas Guell (1882), some of his other works produced were the Finca Guell (1884-1887), the Guell Palace (1885-1889), the Crypt of the Colonia Guell (1898-1887), and the Guell Park (1900-1914).

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Casa Batllo Balcony (1904-1906) Source: (pinterest.com)

Gaudi was born in June of 1852. As a young boy, he developed rheumatic fever causing him to be very fragile. He was unable to attend school right away because of it. This disease plagued him his whole life. He had a brother named Francesc who died at the age of 25 just two months before their mother died.

He helped his father a lot in his shop. His father was a coppersmith where he learned a lot about architecture. Because he was unable to run due to rheumatism, he spent a lot of time just observing nature. He considered nature to be “the supreme work of the creator.” At the age of 18 years old, he started at the University of Barcelona to study architecture. When he graduated, the director said at his graduation: “We awarded the diploma to a madman or a genius. Time will tell.”