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Antonio Gaudí i Cornet ( 25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926 ) was a Catalan Architect famous for his unique style and highly individualistic designs. GAUDí'S LIFE Birth and childhood
Early education
When the time came for his formal education, Gaudí enrolled in the Collegi de les Escoles Píes de Reus, where he soon became fast friends with Eduard Toda and Josep Ribera. It was perhaps their insatiable curiosity that drove them to learn all they could about the intricacies of nature. During his time at Les Escoles, Gaudí did not make the best of grades. He did, however, see remarkable improvement in the area of Geometry , a subject that intrigued him. His fascination with the subject would stay with him until his death. Its first major effect on his life was his choice of career. Higher education Gaudí, as an Architecture student at the Escuela Tècnica Superior d'Arquitectura in Barcelona from 1873 to 1877 , achieved only mediocre grades but did well in his "Trial drawings and projects" course. After five years of work, he was awarded the title of architect in 1878 . As he signed Gaudí's title, Elies Rogent declared, "I have either found a lunatic or a genius." The newly named architect immediately began to plan and design and would remain affiliated with the school his entire life. Interests Gaudí, throughout his life, was fascinated by nature. He studied nature's angles and curves and incorporated them into his designs. Instead of relying on geometric shapes, he mimicked the way trees and humans grow and stand upright. The Hyperboloid s and Paraboloid s he borrowed from nature were easily reinforced by steel rods and allowed his designs to resemble elements from the environment. Because of his rheumatism, the artist observed a strict vegetarian diet, used Homeopathic drug therapy, underwent water therapy, and hiked regularly. Long walks, besides suppressing his rheumatism, further allowed him to experience nature. Later years , in the Eixample , Barcelona .]]
Perhaps it was because of this unfortunate sequence of events that Gaudí changed. He became reluctant to talk with reporters or have his picture taken and solely concentrated on his masterpiece, ''La Sagrada Familia''. On June 7 1926 , Antoni Gaudí was run over by a Tram . Because of his ragged attire and empty pockets, multiple cab drivers refused to pick him up for fear that he would be unable to pay the fare. He was eventually taken to a pauper's hospital in Barcelona. Nobody recognized the injured artist until his friends found him the next day. When they tried to move him into a nicer hospital, Gaudí refused, reportedly saying "I belong here among the poor." He died two days later, half of Barcelona mourning his death. It was, perhaps, fitting that he was buried in the midst of his unfinished masterpiece, ''La Sagrada Família''. ARTISTIC STYLE '']] Gaudí's first works were designed in the style of Gothic and traditional Catalan architectural modes, but he soon developed his own distinct sculptural style. French architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc , who promoted an evolved form of gothic architecture, proved a major influence on Gaudí. But the student surpassed the master architect and contrived highly original designs – irregular and fantastically intricate. Some of his greatest works, most notably ''La Sagrada Família'', have an almost hallucinatory power. He integrated the Parabolic Arch , nature's organic shapes, and the fluidity of water into his architecture. While designing buildings, he observed the forces of Gravity and related Catenary principles. (Gaudí designed many of his arches upside down by hanging various weights on interconnected strings, using gravity to calculate catenaries for a natural curved arch.) Using the Catalan '' Trencadís '' technique, Gaudí often decorated surfaces with broken tiles. The architect's work has been categorized as Art Nouveau architecture, a precursor to Modern Architecture . But his adoption of biomorphic shapes rather than orthogonal lines put him in a category unto himself (in Latin, '' Sui Generis ''). His style was later echoed by that of Austrian architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928–2000). Though hailed as a genius, some hypothesize that Gaudí was Color Blind and that it was only in collaboration with Josep Maria Jujol – an architect twenty seven years his junior whom he acknowledged as a genius in his own right – that he produced his greatest works. POPULARITY Gaudí's originality was at first ridiculed by his peers. Indeed, he was first only supported by the rich industrialist Eusebi Güell . His fellow citizens referred to the ''Casa Milà'' as ''La Pedrera'' ("the quarry"), and George Orwell , who stayed at Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War , admittedly loathed his work. As time passed, though, his work became more famous, up to the point that he is now considered one of Catalonia's Best And Brightest . SOCIAL AND POLITICAL INFLUENCES The opportunities afforded by Catalonia's socioeconomic and political environments were endless. Catalonians such as Antonio Gaudí often showcased the region's diverse art techniques in their works. By mimicking nature, such artists symbolically pushed back the province's ever-increasing industrial society. Gaudí, among others, promoted the Catalan nationalist movement by incorporating elements of Catalan culture in his designs. MAJOR WORKS , El Carmel , Barcelona .]]
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