My Escapes Spain Barcelona Exploring Gaudí's Sprawling Surreal Barcelona Casa Batlló

Casa Batlló

Casa Batlló is an alluring small apartment block that bears the marks of Antoni Gaudí and Josep Maria Jujol.
This one is very different from Casa Milà - and while the latter seems to be getting more spotlight, I've found the Batlló's interior much more beautiful.

Casa Batlló is on the opposite side of the road, a bit further from the Casa Milà. You can walk across in 2-3 minutes.

This building is yet another Gaudí-Jujol co-production. Basically, Gaudí has put more effort into designing the exterior, while Jujol did the interior design work.
I personally believe, it is the best work of the two artists working together.

The experience of visiting Casa Batlló has marked me so deeply that I can still say without any hesitation that it's one of most memorable museums to which I've ever been.

The interiors are very different from what saw at the Casa Milà/La Pedrera, just across the street.

In fact, the Batlló is a restored building. Initially built in 1877 by Emili Sala Cortés (one of Gaudí's teachers) and, it was remodelled in 1900-1906.

It has become another Art Nouveau building credited to Antoni Gaudí.

Honestly, I liked the interiors of this one more than I did in case of Casa Milà/La Pedrera. And this one too, is in remarkable condition.

It's strange how almost everywhere almost everyone keeps forgetting about Jujol, putting Gaudí in front.
We tend to forget about the fact that many of delicate decorative elements, especially the interiors several Gaudí-credited buildings were in fact designed by Jujol.

The Casa Batlló is nicknamed "Casa dels Ossos", meaning "House of Bones" due to the suggestive shapes.

It is more colourful and more detail rich than the Casa Milà, which has a more elegant look.

Josep Batlló, a textile industrialist, member of the rich Batlló family has requested the construction of a unique house that stood out - one like no other.

The building has underwent refurbishing work several times since the two artists have redesigned it.

Currently, except being a museum, the Casa Batlló also hosts various cultural events.

As I entered the building, I was surprised to pass through variations of colour and even shapes kept changing from place to place.

The internal staircase is surrounded by a surreal environment in which blue is the most prominent colour and appears in various nuances.

Not far from the entrance is the fireplace. The entire room is dreamlike, the walls curvy, irregular.

The delicately-shaped "melting" ceiling feels totally hand-made. I suppose much of the work has resulted from feelings rather than exact calculations.

One of my favourite spots in this building was room with the fireplace.

I especially loved the fine paint job on the light brown walls of that room. The irregular "web" painted on the soft brown walls is actually painted in golden colour (also visible on my photos, if you take a better look).

After the room with the fireplace, I walked into a large room with huge windows facing the Passeig de Gràcia main avenue...

I spent long minutes in this room, examining the windows, the pillars and the ceiling.

In that same room with the huge windows, as you look up at the ceiling you will it is twisted in a circular way, looking similar to a vortex.

Admire below... and ask yourself how it was made.

In that particular room, the "web" turns to lighter colour, while the walls' have various shades of grey in the form of irregular spots here and there...

The entire Casa Battló is incredibly diverse by shapes and colours.

My exploration of the Casa Batlló was very exciting. The building is full of surprises.

Almost everywhere you enter you find something new!

And at some point I stopped to think: what if I could live in a place like this?

I photographed this building more than La Pedrera. It's vastly more diverse... As you climb the floors, you will encounter newer environments, but somehow they are in harmony with each other.
There is no stark shocking contrast.

I hope you enjoyed this walkaround inside the Casa Battló and if you're interested to see more about Barcelona, then check the main section of this trip.
You can spend ages in this city, exploring and discovering, but if you have little time, you have to know what you want to see.

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