Barcelona is the city of Antoni Gaudi and a place packed with wonderful Art Noveau architecture. The architectural gem we visited that really sticks in my mind, however, was not one designed by Gaudi.
The Barcelona Sant Pau Site is the largest collection of Art Noveau buildings in the world. Originally the Hospital of the Holy Cross and Saint Paul, it was designed by the architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and is one of Barcelona’s renowned architectural treasures.
The hospital architecture does not feature the same brand of unique eccentricity as seen in Gaudi’s astonishing masterpieces but the scale and the wealth of carefully considered detail makes the place very special.
Building work commenced in 1902 and the hospital opened in 1916, though completion and formal opening did not take place until 1930.
Use of the Art Noveau buildings as a working hospital finally ended in 2009. By that time the tiled walls and ceilings were in desperate need of restoration.
Wai-Yuk Kennedy Textile Art 