The Palau Güell (, ) is a mansion designed by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Antoni Gaudí Antoni Gaudí i Cornet ( , ; ; 25 June 1852 – 10 June 1926) was a Catalans, Catalan architect and designer from Spain, widely known as the greatest exponent of Catalan ''Modernisme''. Gaudí's works have a style, with most located in Barc ...

for the industrial tycoon

Eusebi Güell Eusebi Güell Bacigalupi, 1st Count of Güell (; 15 December 1846 – 8 July 1918), also referred as Eusebio Güell, was a Spanish entrepreneur who profited greatly from the industrial revolution in Catalonia in the late 19th century. Biography ...

, and was built between 1886 and 1888. It is situated on the Carrer Nou de la Rambla, in the El Raval neighborhood of

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. It is part of the

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

"Works of Antoni Gaudí". The home is centered around the main room for entertaining high society guests. Guests entered the home in horse-drawn carriages through the front iron gates, which featured a parabolic arch and intricate patterns of forged ironwork resembling seaweed and in some parts a horsewhip. Animals could be taken down a ramp and kept in the livery stable in the basement where the servants resided, while the guests went up the stairs to the receiving room. The ornate walls and ceilings of the receiving room disguised small viewing windows high on the walls where the owners of the home could view their guests from the upper floor and get a "sneak peek" before greeting them, in case they needed to adjust their attire accordingly. The main party room has a tall ceiling with small holes near the top where lanterns were hung at night from the outside to give the appearance of a starlit sky. In 2004, visits by the public were completely suspended due to renovations; some of the stone used in the original construction was weak and had cracked over the years causing structural problems within the building. It is currently completely open, with all restoration work completed in April 2011. It was used in Antonioni's film '' The Passenger'' as a backdrop for the first meeting between

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. Nicholson is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, often playing rebels fighting against the social structure. Over his five-de ...

and Maria Schneider.

External links

Palau Güell - Official Site

Works of Antoni Gaudí
UNESCO Collection on Google Arts and Culture

* Güell Palace: (http://www.gaudidesigner.com/uk/palacio-guell.html) {{DEFAULTSORT:Palau Guell Houses completed in 1888 Antoni Gaudí buildings Buildings and structures in Barcelona Tourist attractions in Barcelona World Heritage Sites in Catalonia Houses in Catalonia Modernisme architecture in Barcelona Art Nouveau houses

See also

External links