The origins of an ancient city
Barcelona's history is that of a thousand-year-old city that still bears the marks of the astonishing know-how of its various occupants, starting with the Romans, whose treasures of inventiveness and engineering can still be seen here and there. Remains of the first city wall built in the 4th century can still be seen in the Barri Gόtic. But it's in the underground passages of the Museu d'Historia de la Ciutat that the full measure of Roman genius is best appreciated. There: a tour of authentic remains and reconstructions offers a plunge into ancient Barcelona.
Romanesque spirituality
Between the 11th and 13th centuries, Barcelona, like the rest of Europe, became Romanesque. Romanesque art was sober and functional, and its architecture was above all religious. Round arches and barrel vaults, thick walls and buttresses characterize the buildings of this period. Coinciding with the emergence of feudal society and monastic orders, Romanesque art was also expressed in elegantly proportioned castles and monasteries. Don't hesitate to get out of town and explore the province to discover the finest examples of Romanesque architecture. Cardona castle has preserved its high tower, while the Sant Pere-Santa Maria-Sant Miquel monumental complex impresses with the elegance of its Catalan Romanesque style, itself strongly inspired by the Lombard Romanesque style, and its superb exterior ornamentation.
Gothic Splendors
The Barri Gόtic is Europe's largest Gothic district, so don't miss out on a stroll through its labyrinthine alleyways. An art of light, height and ornamentation, Gothic gave rise to buildings of remarkable finesse and elegance. Among the jewels of this style are the Pedralbes monastery and its three-level cloister, the church of Santa Maria del Mar with its three naves of equal height and its dazzling rose window bathing them in light, and of course Barcelona Cathedral with its 29-metre-high nave, 28 richly decorated chapels and cloister. And while you're looking at these architectural treasures, you'll discover a very special Catalan feature: yes, Catalan Gothic buildings are not as high as most European Gothic constructions, as the Catalans prefer to emphasize width, offering stretched vaults of great beauty. Where Romanesque art was primarily religious, Gothic art became urban. From the 13th to the 16th century, the city enjoyed an incredible period of prosperity, and the new merchant bourgeoisie provided the money to build buildings that reflected this splendor. Don't miss the old Drassanes or royal arsenals, the Gothic hall of the Llotja (the stock exchange), the Town Hall and, of course, the Palau de la Generalitat, a superb example of Catalan civil Gothic. Merchants also built private residences to reflect their power. The stately homes of Montcada street are precious witnesses to this period... even if some of them now have Baroque facades. This astonishing cohabitation can be explained by the fact that Renaissance architects, greatly influenced by the clean lines of ancient architecture, rejected Gothic on a massive scale, deeming it too vulgar, preferring instead a Baroque style. The face of these homes is Baroque, but their heart remains Gothic!
Freedom and brilliance of Modernism
In 1888, Barcelona hosted the Universal Exhibition. This major event coincided with the birth of the Modernist movement. Combining formal freedom, new materials and organic inspiration, Modernism is a movement in its own right, inseparable from one of its most famous exponents, the brilliant Antoni Gaudí. From Parc Güell, his astonishing garden city, to the Sagrada Familia, his unfinished masterpiece, not to mention his superb creations in the Eixample district, Gaudí left his mark on the Catalan city in curves and colors. To find out more about Modernism, take a look at our thematic dossier!
The International Exhibition of 1929
In 1929, Barcelona was transformed by the International Exhibition. It completely changed the face of the Montjuïc hill district, which now boasted an astonishing palace, the Palau Nacional, the Spanish pavilion for the exhibition. At the bottom of the stairs leading up to this modern temple with its old-fashioned charm is a building not to be missed: the German pavilion for the exhibition, built by Mies Van der Rohe. Destroyed at the end of the exhibition, the pavilion was rebuilt identically in 1986 by a team of young Catalan architects. Mies Van der Rohe's play on different reading levels and the interplay of reflections and mirrors create an elegant transition between tradition and modernity.
Olympic Games and contemporary renewal
Crushed by Franco's regime, the city had to wait until the 1980s to finally regain its boldness and freedom. This was helped by a major new event: the 1992 Olympic Games. The city was transformed into an urban and architectural laboratory, attracting big names from all over the world to donate buildings that became strategic points of development. Not far from the new Olympic port, the curved, gilded whale-shaped sculpture by artist-architect Frank Gehry is one of the great symbols of this renewal. As is the Museum of Contemporary Art designed by the American Richard Meier, with its geometric minimalism of white and light. Santiago Calatrava, on the other hand, has endowed Montjuïc with a telecommunication tower of sleek, curved lines. But it was a local boy who was to make a big impact during this period: Ricardo Bofill. A post-modernist architect, he rejected functionalism and multiplied antique references, as in the case of the National Theatre of Catalonia, a veritable Greek temple flanked by 26 columns. His architecture, which often favors concrete, has been the subject of much debate, but that hasn't stopped him from putting his signature all over the city. Jean Nouvel built his Torre Agbar, now Torre Glories, at the entrance to the Poblenou district. A 145-meter-high glass dome with slender forms, this astonishing tower reduces energy impact by using natural light and ventilation. Richard Rogers has transformed the former Plaça d'Espanya bullring into a vast shopping complex, while preserving the original red-brick structure; while Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron have given the Forum, a former wasteland turned fashionable district, the Edifici Forum, whose geometric shapes and bright blue give the whole an almost futuristic appearance. Toyo Ito, the father of conceptual architecture, endowed the Fira Gran Via Barcelona with two twisted red towers reminiscent of Gaudí's modernist curves. Exuberant and teeming, Barcelona never ceases to reinvent itself under the pencil strokes of these genius architects.
Catalan design
Boasting a wealth of design and applied arts schools as well as creative studios, Barcelona vibrates to the rhythm of contemporary design. But why has design taken on such importance here more than anywhere else? It goes back to the conquest of America! Deprived by the Castilians of all trade with the New World, the Catalans had to produce their own wealth. But it's not so simple when the land doesn't produce raw materials. The ingenious Catalans therefore embarked on processing industries (glass, textiles, ceramics, leather...) and put their handicraft skills to good use. Add to this the vision of the modernists and their concept of the total work, including container and content, and you have a city that is being redesigned by genius designers, starting with Javier Mariscal. This jack-of-all-trades creates ceramics, comics, furniture and even Cobi, the mischievous little dog, mascot of the '92 Olympic Games. To discover the richness of Barcelona's design scene, head to the Disseny Hub, Barcelona's design museum with its spectacular, but above all ecological and sustainable architecture! And don't miss the Printemps du Design, held every two years and offering a unique circuit of galleries and boutiques. Barcelona has really taken to heart the order issued by the city council in the 90s with its "Barcelona, make yourself beautiful" campaign. The city adorns itself with new assets, never forgetting to combine modernity with Catalan identity.
A little lesson in urban planning
Since Roman times, Barcelona has been a full-scale laboratory for urban planning research. Bordered on one side by the mountains and on the other by the sea, forced to reinvent itself from within, the city poses challenges that awaken the most brilliant minds.
The urban utopianism of Ildefonso Cerdà. Ildefonso Cerdà was the man who ushered Barcelona into a period of unprecedented urban planning reform. At the end of the 19th century, the city's sanitary situation was deplorable. The population continued to grow, but the city wall prevented expansion. As Barcelona was considered a strategic military zone, any construction outside the city was forbidden, as it could impede its protection. For Cerdà, however, the city wall had to be destroyed. He proposed expanding the city according to a checkerboard plan, also known as the Hippodamian plan after its inventor, the famous Greek engineer and geometer Hippodamos of Miletus. Streets were straight and intersected at right angles, creating square blocks. This was the birth of the Eixample district, or extension, whose foundation stone was laid by Queen Isabella II on today's Plaça de Catalunya. For Cerdà, the city had to be conceived in its entirety. He thus imagined new communication routes adapted to the evolutions of the modern world, without forgetting to give great importance to green spaces. In his original plan, Cerdà tried to strike the right balance between the advantages of the rural lifestyle and the imperatives of modernity, such as the new challenges of mobility. At Cerdà, modernity must go hand in hand with equality, and people must be at the heart of every project. However, many voices were raised against this plan, which was judged to be monotonous. Many Barcelonans also regretted the lack of centrality around the historic city. Added to these criticisms was the acceleration of real estate speculation. All this virgin land fuelled the thirst for profit of numerous developers, who sometimes built to excess, eliminating in the process certain key elements of Cerdà's plan, such as individual gardens. However, the checkerboard pattern is still clearly visible, so don't hesitate to get up high to appreciate its regularity.
Olympism and urban renewal. The second period of urban upheaval coincided with the organization of the '92 Olympic Games. The municipality set up a team of architects and urban planners led by Oriol Bohigas, a leading exponent of Catalan architecture, who embarked on a pharaonic project. More than 150 architects worked on 300 projects. New roads, especially underground ones, were built, entire neighborhoods were renovated, starting with the wastelands of the seafront, and new sewers and rainwater collectors were installed. The operation was far-reaching, and unfortunately led to the destruction of certain neighborhoods and buildings, despite their undoubted heritage value. Voices have begun to be heard in support of this urban planning shift, demonstrating one of Barcelona's great characteristics: here, everything is discussed and debated, including urban planning.
Towards sustainable urban planning. After the frenzy of the Olympic Games, Barcelonaers agreed on the importance of including heritage, without opposing it to modernity, and without falling into a nostalgic identity. Today, more than ever, the city maintains this precept, while at the same time committing itself to combating the effects of mass tourism, gentrification and climate change.
In Barcelona, we imagine a city for all and with all, through major urban projects such as the rehabilitation of working-class neighborhoods - like Can Peguerra and its 600 working-class houses, now redesigned in collaboration with local residents - or the legendary industrial district of Poblenou, now poised to become the epicenter of new technologies under the impetus of the 22@ project, which brings together green spaces, rehabilitated wasteland and new buildings capable of accommodating numerous housing units and services; or the refurbishment of covered markets to promote exchange and proximity, while preserving the rich heritage of these living spaces - as in the Sainte-Catherine market. Finally, the city is anchoring its urban and architectural heritage in a vision of a sustainable future with the creation of superblocks, each made up of nine squares from Cerdà's checkerboard plan. These new urban structures help to relieve congestion while reintegrating green spaces and developing alternative forms of mobility. Urban transformations as much as social ones, these superblocks put citizens back at the heart of the city.
Barcelona continues to transform, but without ever denying its powerful Catalan identity.
