Casa Batlló

Gaudí's most theatrical facade, inspired by the legend of Sant Jordi

Address Passeig de Gràcia 43

Casa Batlló is Gaudí at his most exuberant. The facade shimmers with broken ceramic tiles in blues and greens, the balconies curve like the bones of some creature, and the roof ridge ripples like the back of a dragon — a reference to the Catalan legend of Sant Jordi slaying the beast. Gaudí remodelled an existing building for the Batlló family between 1904 and 1906, and the result has no straight lines worth mentioning.

The interior is just as remarkable. The main staircase rises through a blue-tiled atrium that graduates in shade from dark at the bottom to pale at the top, giving the impression of being underwater. The noble floor has sinuous doorways, mushroom-shaped fireplaces, and a rooftop terrace of sculptural chimneys twisted into spirals. Book tickets in advance — the audio guide is thorough and the place is popular.

things to do sight architecture eixample
A story
The Batlló family originally bought a dull conventional apartment building on Passeig de Gràcia in 1904 and commissioned Gaudí to demolish it and start fresh. Gaudí persuaded them instead to let him remodel the existing structure — saving money while allowing him to do something no architect had done before. He spent two years redesigning every surface inside and out, keeping the load-bearing walls but transforming everything else. The result looks as though the building grew rather than was built.