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Antoni Gaudí i Cornet, the Catalan architect, artist and designer that so it was admired as criticized while still alive, has a fame today that pára not to grow. It lived during the esplendor of the “Modernismo”, movement that if expressed in the architecture and all the arts in the Catalúnia and that he has correspondence with the “Art Nouveau” in France and Belgium, the “Modernismo” in Spain and the “Jugendstil” in Germany. Antoni Gaudí executed the majority of its workmanships in the city of Barcelona and many of its projects had been never become fullfilled
The present Casa Batlló, is the result of a total refurbishment of an old previous conventional house built in 1877.
Gaudí was commissioned by the owner Josep Batlló i Casanovas to totally renew the old building. On that base, Gaudí projected this astonishing house, one of the most fancy and "special" of Barcelona.
The project of the architect Antoni Gaudí i Cornet of 1904 was strongly discussed by municipal authorities due to a lot of elements of the design of Gaudí over the bylaws standards.
The changes made by Gaudí on the old building were radical and affect all the building. In fact the building of Gaudí is a new building.
Gaudí added a gallery, the balconies and the polychrome ceramics.
Inside, the spaces were totally reorganized in order to obtain in it more natural light (the courtyard is covered with blue ceramic progressively brighten to assure the same or similar light on top and on ground) and ventilation. Gaudí also added two floors to the building.
Outside, Gaudí carried out one of the most impressive and brilliant urban façades of the world. He used for it the typical constructive elements of the Modernisme (Catalan Art Nouveau) as the ceramics, the stone and the iron forged. The facade is impressive so much if is contemplated during the day as during the night, under a special lighting.