A kilometer or so west of the Sagrada Família is another of Antoni Gaudí’s works, a distinctive building popularly known as La Pedrera (“the quarry”). Principal construction of the building took place between 1906 and 1910, but it was not certified as complete until 1912. It’s officially known as Casa Milà, after Pere Milà, the wealthy developer who enlisted Gaudí to build it. It was designed as something of a hybrid building - partly a residence for the Milà family, and partly a block of apartments to be rented out. It was originally supposed to include quite a bit of religiously-themed ornamentation (including large statues of the Virgin Mary and archangels), but this plan ran afoul of local building codes and a then-prevailing trend of anticlericalism, so these elements ended up being largely excluded. Gaudí came close to quitting the project because of these exclusions, but was fortunately talked out of it by a priest. For more background on the building, and more, see the official La Pedrera website.

We emerged from the “Diagonal” Metro station and walked to a vantage point across the street from the building. Overall, the building looks a little like it was made from wax and left out in the sun too long. Architectural elements involving straight lines are not in evidence – no doubt Gaudí’s trademark emulation of structures found in nature (also much in evidence at the Sagrada Família). Covering the façade were many balconies, with wrought-iron railings that looked as though they were made from pieces of scrap metal, twisted and randomly welded together. These were apparently the work of the architect Josep Maria Jujol, who worked with Gaudí and contributed a number of decorative elements to the building. Also somewhat visible from across the street were some very odd-looking chimneys emerging from the roof. More tantalizing details to reinforce our determination to see what was inside this unusual building.

Roof with Tourists Med   Lrg   Xlg	Façade with Details MP4-Sml   MP4-Med   WMV-HD
Balconies Med   Lrg   Xlg	South Façade Med   Lrg   Xlg

Though there are still private residents of La Pedrera, public access to parts of the building is available. You have to stand in a line and buy tickets, though. The line wasn’t too long, but it was pretty slow – we ended up waiting about half an hour. When we got in, we started out in a fairly narrow courtyard which was open to the sky and had an unusual color scheme with striking painted details (apparently another Jujol contribution).

Courtyard Med   Lrg   Xlg	Courtyard Stairway Med   Lrg
Painted Ceiling Med   Lrg   Xlg	Painted Ceiling Med   Lrg   Xlg

We took an elevator to the first stop of the unguided tour, a small museum in the attic. Here we found exhibits showing some of Gaudí’s inspirations from nature, scale models and even Gaudí-designed furniture.

Nella Taking Picture Med   Lrg   Xlg	"Paraboloids" Hanging from Ceiling Med   Lrg
Tree with Branches Med   Lrg	Pinecones and Corn Cobs Med   Lrg   Xlg
Snake Skeleton and Shells Med   Lrg   Xlg	Gaudí-Designed Chairs Med   Lrg   Xlg

We then proceeded to the next stop – the roof. Here we found ourselves in a forest of the weirdest chimneys we’d ever seen. Undoubtedly some of the chimneys weren’t really chimneys (some of them were probably vents, and some things looked like they might just be access points for stairways), but all were unique and displayed Gaudí’s attention to detail.

Chimneys Med   Lrg   Xlg	The Roof Med   Lrg   Xlg
Nella and Roof MP4-Sml   MP4-Med   WMV-HD	Chimney Group Med   Lrg   Xlg
Bob with Chimneys Med   Lrg	The Roof Med   Lrg   Xlg
Courtyard Windows and Roof MP4-Sml   MP4-Med   WMV-HD	Chimneys and Sagrada Família Med   Lrg   Xlg
The Roof Med   Lrg   Xlg	Nella and Chimneys MP4-Sml   MP4-Med   WMV-HD

We could also see down into the building’s courtyards, giving us a different vantage point.

And being on the roof, we also had a pretty good view of part of Barcelona.

Our next stop was a many-roomed apartment which was furnished and kept in a condition to exhibit the living situation of an early 20th Century bourgeois family.

Dining Room Med   Lrg   Xlg	Bed Med   Lrg   Xlg
View from Balcony Med   Lrg   Xlg	Typewriter Med   Lrg   Xlg
Lace Med   Lrg	Window with Lace Curtains Med   Lrg
Kitchen Table Med   Lrg	Stove Med   Lrg   Xlg
Recreational Equipment Med   Lrg   Xlg	Maid's Quarters Med   Lrg   Xlg
Ironing Board and Sewing Machine Med   Lrg   Xlg	Small Stove with Irons Med   Lrg   Xlg
Children's Playroom Med   Lrg   Xlg	Children's Clothes Med   Lrg   Xlg

The tour ended, we returned to the courtyard, on ground level.

We emerged from the building and found ourselves back on the main street, the Passeig de Gràcia. This street is interesting in its own right, being the site of a number of other architectural experiments from the early 20th Century. We turned left and started walking.