Barcelona | Casa Vicens

06/08/2018

Middle Eastern-Style Architecture in Gràcia

In the mid-19th century, the city of Barcelona was deeply interested in Middle Eastern culture. This taste for the Middle East coincided with a moment when the city was expanding and its new bourgeois class was gaining strength. This was reflected in the construction of new buildings with an eclectic style where the Arabic architecture … Read more

01/08/2018

Gaudí in Gràcia: collaborations with Aleix Clapés

Casa Vicens is the first house that Antoni Gaudí built in the city of Barcelona, specifically in the Vila de Gràcia. A few years after the Gràcia’s annexation into Barcelona, Antoni Gaudí carried out another project in Gràcia, a lesser-known work by the architect but one which is especially interesting from the point of view … Read more

09/07/2018

Photographing Gaudí’s first house

Photography Workshop in Casa Vicens, by Pol Viladoms (24/07/2018) “Vision is synthetic. Life is appreciated through vision.” Antoni Gaudí In this workshop, participants will get to know the basic principles of architectural photography, learn to value the different actors involved, what type of equipment is appropriate, which phone applications can help us, etc. In … Read more

04/06/2018

The restoration work on Casa Vicens named as a finalist for the 2018 FAD Awards

José Antonio Martínez Lapeña, Elías Torres and David García, members of the architectural team in charge of restoring Casa Vicens, have been named as finalists for 2018 FAD Awards, now in its 60th year, for their work on Gaudí’s first house. According to the jury, “the architects have proposed a comprehensive and very detailed restoration … Read more

18/05/2018

This year, like every year, Casa Vicens will celebrate the Santa Rita festival with the neighbourhood of Gràcia

As we explained las year in this blog, many people from the neighbourhood of Gràcia remember how, year after year, the doors of Casa Vicens were opened to adore Santa Rita, bless roses and pay homage to the saint. This year will be the first time that this day is celebrated with the house open … Read more

10/05/2018

The mysteries of water in Gaudí’s work (II)

[Continuation of the post entitled “The mysteries of water in Gaudí’s work (I)”] Apart from the fountain, another element directly related to the water is the exposed brick waterfall, formed by a catenary arch that was located in the garden. Above the arch, there were two rows of thin brick pillars crowned by a capital … Read more

17/04/2018

The first Sant Jordi at Casa Vicens

Sant Jordi heralds the burst of spring, literary profusion and neighbourly joy. The streets overflow with adventure and people are filled with the gleaming intuition that good weather is on its way. This year, we are especially excited about the festivities because they will be the first that we open our doors open to the … Read more

20/03/2018

An unfortunate incident

In the autumn of 1898, Casa Vicens was the scene of an unfortunate incident that was documented by newspapers such as La Publicidad, La Vanguardia, La Campana de Gràcia and others. We can also seek out additional information and inquire into how the neighbours perceived the building, for example. When conducting historical research, direct sources … Read more

21/04/2017

Gaudi in literature

Gaudí incorporated images of Saint George, the mythical dragon he slew, and roses into the buildings he designed long before these motifs became associated with Barcelona’s festive annual book day, which was celebrated for the very first time in 1926. His fascination with the myth of the dragon was so intense that he even conceived … Read more

06/02/2017

Casa Vicens, a single-family summer house designed for Manel Vicens in the Village of Gràcia (1883-1885)

Over its 130 years of history, Casa Vicens has solely been used as a residence, originally as a summer home and later as a first residence. It has undergone a succession of different changes and modifications – even being divided into different independent flats – with the goal of adapting it to the needs of … Read more