| Vol. 11: Signs and the Architecture of Gaudi |
 Japanese
people appear to be fascinated by the architecture of Gaudi, and famous
sites such as the Sagrada Familia Temple and Guell Park are always thronged
with Japanese tourists. In contrast, there are no tourist buses that even
bother to stop at the Casa Mila facing Passeig Gracia in the center of
the city. Lying outside the tourist bustle, the Casa Mila is the only
communal housing block created by Gaudi. The first floor is occupied by
shops, but the building is a far more substantial one that this suggests.
Rather than describing this building created by a genius as a work of
architecture, onefs first impression is rather of a mysterious, monumental
rock stuck in the middle of the city. The restaurant created in the image
of a cave and the show windows of the boutiques are skillfully formed
in imitation of nature itself. Although one might think that these shop
signs are ornate and intricate, they are in fact surprisingly simple,
and the materials used are modern ones such as neon and acryl. But this
highly unusual building in no sense seems unnatural: one of the outstanding
features of Gaudifs work is precisely his manner of making the unusual
appear completely convincing. The projecting sign of the Tabacos restaurant
is simple, but it is astonishing to see how it fits in perfectly with
the building in terms of both color and shape. |
