By Charlene Medders
Park Güell captures a beautiful view of Barcelona, as it’s just over 3 miles from the center of the city.
Mosaics scattered around a park overlooking the Barcelona skyline is a sight people from all over the world come to experience. What was once something built for wealthy Spaniards to enjoy a lavish lifestyle away from the bustling streets of Barcelona, turned into a modern nature park and famous tourist destination.
Vibrant colors and intricate designs of stones and tiles with varying textures create a fantasy that could only come from the revolutionary architect that is Antoní Gaudí. The impressive detail of the architecture is overwhelming.
Considered one of Gaudí’s masterpieces, this park is a place that will captivate people of all ages because of its vibrant, whimsical architecture. From mosaic benches overlooking the beautiful city of Barcelona to a building that resembles a gingerbread house, Park Güell is no traditional park.
Its origin isn’t an ordinary story either.
Gaudí used a variety of colors when designing these benches and the buildings. His way of displaying art was anything but ordinary.
From a Wealthy Estate to a Public Park
Park Güell has over 100 years of history and urbanization, as Eusebi Güell first commissioned Gaudí to build the park for wealthy families on the large estate popularly known as the Bare Mountain. It was a great location in a very healthy environment with spectacular views, and Güell had the intent of recreating the look of British residential parks.
Güell believed this would be the perfect place for the wealthy to get out of the center of Barcelona and take a break from the fast lane of life. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out the way Güell had hoped.
Victor Pilgrim, who has worked at Park Güell for a few months, said that in the early 1900s, the wealthy people of Barcelona simply didn’t want to move.
“The time that Park Güell was being built was also a time when the rich people of Barcelona were choosing to live in the center of the city,” he said. “They wanted to be in the center, not so far away from everything.”
Construction began in 1900, and a good bit of the work was done within the first few years, including the entrance, main staircase and exterior fence. The sad reality was that building this park was more difficult that Güell originally thought.
The famous entrance and main staircase can be found crowded with tourists on any given day.
There were very restrictive construction conditions in the area that the park was being built. Only a small portion of the original plot could be built, and the height and location of houses couldn’t obstruct the view of the sea or reduce anyone else’s sunlight. This caused plans to change frequently as construction was in motion.
The lack of a transportation system to the park and complex conditions in the park itself ultimately led to a lack of buyers, and construction of the park stopped in 1914. Only 2 houses were built out of the 60 that Güell originally planned for.
But that wasn’t the end for Park Güell. In fact, it’s probably more popular now than it would’ve been if it were a neighborhood for the wealthy.
After construction came to a halt, the park transformed into a large private garden that Güell used for public events, and this was when the tourism of the area began. It later opened as a public park in 1926.
Pilgrim said he is satisfied with Park Güell now, but he acknowledges that it isn’t what Güell intended for it to be.
Gaudí’s religion, Christianity, can be seen through his works at Park Güell by the several crosses displayed throughout the area.
“It was a project that failed,” he said. “It could have turned out so different, but it worked out because now it’s one of the main attractions of Barcelona.”
The Influence of Modernism on Architecture
Antoní Gaudí used Catalan modernism as his inspiration when creating the architecture for the park.
Visiting Park Güell gives you a taste of the very popular movement of modernism that occurred in the early 1900s. The Catalan people desired to modernize and strengthen the region of Catalonia, and that started with Barcelona.
During this time, modernism meant more than just architecture and the arts. It was evident in language, literature and music. This modern aesthetic and mindset that Gaudí had is what created the mystical architecture that began being celebrated in the early 1900s and continues to be celebrated today.
Seeing this architecture for the first time is unforgettable. At least it was for Ella, a woman who was visiting Barcelona for a week while on a trip with her coworkers from a university in Poland.
This was Ella’s first time in Spain, and she said she’s never seen anything like Park Güell. She loves mosaic architecture, but she had never seen it firsthand in this way.
Seeing how intricate the details were all around the park and realizing it was constructed out of stone and tiles was an enlightening experience for her.
Park Güell is filled with stone walkways and paths that not only display nature, but showcase it at its finest.
Ella visited the park by herself, and she said it was peaceful and calming. She was able to enjoy the park without any distractions. She liked that she was far enough out of the city but that it was still easily visible from all around the park.
“The trees and the sounds of the birds is so soothing while looking at the city in the distance,” she said.
Gaudí is one of her favorite artists after this trip, and she admires the time he and Güell spent on this project.
“The entire idea is amazing,” she said. “Gaudí and Güell thought about it a lot. It’s more than just construction and stone. It was all planned out perfectly.”
People go to Park Güell as an escape from Barcelona, a place for leisure in a calm and healthier environment. It’s the perfect place to rest and admire the city in the distance.
From Gaudí’s House to a Museum
Gaudí’s house was opened to the public as a museum in 1963.
One important aspect of Park Güell is Gaudí’s house, which actually wasn’t designed by Gaudí himself, even though he was an architect. The house was designed by Francesc Berenguer i Mestres in 1904, and after no one was interested in buying the house, Güell sold it to Gaudí in 1906.
Gaudí spent the last 20 years of his life in this house, which was later turned into the museum that it is today. Visitors can go inside the house and be immersed in Gaudí’s fantasy-like world.
A Life-Changing Experience
Gaudí’s use of curved shapes and edges are seen on the buildings of Park Güell. They are similar in style to his famous Casa Batllò.
Park Güell should be on the top of your list of Barcelona destinations. The experience of exploring the park for the first time is like no other. You learn the beauty of Gaudí’s architecture in such an intimate way.
It’s a gem of Barcelona that everyone should see.
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