Antoni Gaudí i Cornet (1852-1926) was born on June 25, 1852 in Reus, a small Catalan city not far from Barcelona. His father, Francesc Gaudi I Serra, was a coppersmith. Gaudi worked as a short-term blacksmith apprentice before going to Barcelona to study. He went to Barcelona in 1869, but was awarded Catalonia in 1873. Study permit from the Provincial School of Architecture in Nia. Gaudí was influenced by Miloy Fontanas during his student days and graduated in 1878.
Gaudi was born in 1852 in Reus, Catalonia, the most developed industrial and commercial region in Spain. At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, Gaudí designed a series of works such as the Casual House of Comia, the Bissons House, the Guerre House, the Teresa Institute, and the Mira Pedrera. Most of them are distributed in Catalonia. Romania, especially Barcelona. His most famous work is the Sagrada Familia (or La Sagrada Familia) which has not yet been completed. Gaudi's unique construction methods added a unique page to the history of 20th century architecture. The use of collage decoration and painting of glass, ceramics, mosaics, etc. in architecture are also very Gaudi-style techniques. Recently, the book "Gaudi's House" (written by Xu Fenlin, July 2003 edition) published by Hebei Education Press shows people the full picture of Gaudi's architectural art. Joan Bossagoda Nonelli, Director of the Royal Gaudí Museum in Spain, was pleased to write a preface to this book, affirming the author’s research and understanding of Gaudí and modernist architecture.
"Gaudi's House" divides Gaudí's works into three periods, one is early oriental style works, the other is neo-Gothic and modernist style works, and the third is naturalism work. Gaudí's early works, such as the Casual House of Comia on the coast of the Candablica Mountains in northern Spain, as well as the Bisons House, the Guerre House, and the Guerre Pavilion in Barcelona, ??have Islamic decorative features. style. As his architectural theories matured, Gaudí became obsessed with nature. The book writes:
"Gaudi... believed that there are no straight lines in nature. If there are, they are transformed from a lot of curved lines. Gaudí loved nature and paid special attention to animals, plants and animals. The shape of mountains. He observed the details, and the natural beauty he saw was not deliberate beauty, but practical and practical beauty, so he found the beauty he wanted - nature is beauty, beauty is practicality, and practicality is nature. The existence of nature is the manifestation of practicality.”
The Casa Batlló and the La Pedrera are representative works of Gaudí’s practice of natural theory. The former uses small pieces of colored ceramics and glass to create organic shapes. The story of "George slaying the dragon and saving the princess" spread in Catalonia is the source of inspiration for the architectural design. This house full of mysterious atmosphere is even more amazing when viewed at night. Gaudí himself excitedly said that it "looks like a house in heaven." La Pedrera's "appearance resembles a cliff, and the continuous construction method of the inside and outside is described as a portrayal of a 'maze'." Its continuous curved shape is as dynamic as the undulating waves. The large windows on the facade are like honeycombs, which also makes people feel that the house is a rock eroded by the waves.
Of course, Gaudí’s greatest contribution to the history of human culture is the Sagrada Familia. The Sagrada Familia is a church that symbolizes Barcelona or Catalan identity. Gaudí began designing the first sketch of the Sagrada Familia in 1885. After 1914, he devoted all his energy to the construction of the Sagrada Familia and no longer took over other new architectural design work. Only the east and west towers of the entire church have been completed. Most of the buildings in the Sagrada Familia are still under construction, and it may take hundreds of years to complete. Gaudi dedicated his life to the Sagrada Familia. He walked more than ten kilometers from Geer Park to the Sagrada Familia to work every day until he finally had to leave his residence in Geer Park because of his old age and live in a studio in the Sagrada Familia. There he worked, prayed, and worshiped every day, rarely going out. If you go out, it is to raise funds for the Sagrada Familia construction project.
Gaudi was a genius and a workaholic. He devoted his time to architecture and never married.
The author of the book said with emotion: "Who can be like Gaudi and carefully ask to 'assemble' bricks one by one? No architect can have 'time' like him and patiently put each brick together." It is an exercise to follow the building's growth every second, every hour, and every day, stare at the building, discuss the form and structure of the building with the workers, and direct every step of the construction that may 'fail' or 'succeed'. How can a great man not be cultivated? Therefore, Gaudí’s life is full of legends, and his works are still alive in everyone’s heart.”
As a man who does not seek fame and fortune. The architect, Gaudí dressed so simply that he was even mistaken for a beggar. When he was knocked down by a cable car when he was out at the age of 74, no one thought that he was Gaudí. No passers-by rushed to help take him to the hospital. Later, the labor police took him to the Hospital for the Poor. Gaudí passed away two days later.
The complex details and decorations are the most fascinating aspects of Gaudi's works. This gesture seems to be completely opposite to the modern architectural movement. Today we can see modern architecture in the "minimalist" style everywhere, and what we hear are the famous sayings in the architectural world: "Ornamentation is sin" and "less is more." However, the history of architecture or art has more complexities. In Gaudi's hands, decoration is not a sin, decoration is the manifestation of the architect's genius, and "more" is also a new symbol of simplicity. Gaudí's work constitutes another thread outside the modern architectural movement. Although he also absorbed the essence of Gothic, Islamic, Art Nouveau and other architectures, he used his imagination to transform them into bizarre architectural structures.