I was replying a query somewhere else and I thought this might also be of interest to those RS members visiting La Pedrera in Barcelona...
if you're in the area, there are four other houses which you might want to explore. In this case, though I'm afraid is only seeing the façades -and if you're lucky having a peek in the entrance- because they're private buildings, not for visiting. One is Casa Comalat in Diagonal, 442 a magnificent building by Salvador Valeri i Popurull. Don't forget to walk round to the street in the back of the building, Carrer Còrsega, to see a bit more); another one is Palau del Baró de Quadras, a 1906 modernist palace featuring ornate Gothic & Arabesque-inspired details, also in Diagonal, 373 (opposite to the previous place mentioned!); then the famous Casa Terradas -a.k.a. as Casa de les Punxes, or the House of Spikes, because of its pointed turrets- located in Diagonal 420. This one is partly visitable, more info here. and the third one is Casa Macaya in Passeig de Sant Joan, 108, another great work by famous Puig i Cadafalch. This one you can enter the ground floor and peek around.
Another interesting place that it's going to be open to the public next 16th is Casa Vicens, in the district of Gràcia, being the first house designed by Gaudí. I was lucky enough to be able to visit last Friday in a sort of preview but I must say I wasn't impressed. While I enjoyed the visit note that the house is small and, this being very personal, the overall style I didn't like as it's a mix of styles from different geographical places. One has to understand that Modernisme, much like Art Nouveau, has very different exponents and there are significant differences between the styles of this and that architect, say between Gaudí and Puig i Cadafalch for example. However, a key piece of this art and architectural movement was the "mix" different styles so one needs to expect a sort of "mess" when it comes to continuity, so to speak. In Catalan, we have a very particular word for this, which is not in the "formal" dictionaries: poti-poti (pronounced "poh-tee-poh-tee") meaning a bunch of unconnected things.
Anyhow, for those reeeally interested in Modernisme (hallo, Ann!) you might like to visit Casa Vicens as to understand the origins of Gaudí's works. I especially liked the intricate decorations in the main room (dining room) which resemble vines from nature. They're made of papier mâché and certainly bring it off to the untrained eye. Another interesting thing to pay attention to is the short 10' video on the second floor which explains the explosion of Modernism in the context of a city waking up from a long lethargy after her defeat to the Spanish invaders in the early 1700s.
If anything, something that might be putting off some people is the price of the ticket, which I believe it's going to be around 14-16€. To me, I humbly think it's too high "for the goods" in display, but again, that's me.
Enjoy!
PS: Actually, I was writing this with Ann in mind :)....
