Gaudí the Complete Buildings

No one who has ever ranted at the unimaginative architectural desert of any given major city of the world can resist the sheer originality and genius of Antoni Gaudi. Barcelona must be the luckiest city in the world!The book gives a brief introduction to the life of the artist (including the tragic way he died), but the bulk of the book focuses on his major works, from his first commission, the tile palace Casa Vicens to the famous still unfinished Sagrada Familia. Beautiful photographs of interiors as well as exteriors are supported by a descriptive prose. What I enjoyed most were the details of furniture, specially designed fittings (stained glass windows, lamps, tiles) and of course the colourful mosaics which feature on several projects. And what Gaudi does with the arch structure is truly reverent!The only other artist I know of who does such amazing things with building forms is Hundertwasser - but I think it is clear that Gaudi's formal architectural training has given his designs an edge of superiority. He plays with form and structure with incredible confidence, and the results are not just interesting for their novelty, but also that this 'art' is actually practical, and amazingly conforms to the laws of physics!I strongly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to vicariously enjoy the beauty and innovation of Gaudi. It can serve as a reminder for those lucky enough to have seen the buildings - and for the rest of us, another reason to visit Barcelona in the future.

No one who has ever ranted at the unimaginative architectural desert of any given major city of the world can resist the sheer originality and genuis of Antoni Gaudi. Barcelona must be the luckiest city in the world!The book gives a brief introduction to the life of the artist (including the tragic way he died), but the bulk of the book focuses on his major works, from his first commission, the tile palace Casa Vicens to the famous still unfinished Sagrada Familia. Beautiful photographs of interiors as well as exteriors are supported by a descriptive prose. What I enjoyed most were the details of furniture, specially designed fittings (stained glass windows, lamps, tiles) and of course the colourful mosaics which feature on several projects. And what Gaudi does with the arch structure is truly reverant!I strongly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to vicariously enjoy the beauty and innovation of Gaudi. It can serve as a reminder for those lucky enough to have seen the buildings - and for the rest of us, another reason to visit Barcelona in the future.

I visited Barcelona this summer on a day trip from our family holiday in Costa Dorada. I was drawn mainly by the opportunity to see first hand the amazing works of art by Antoni Gaudi which I had heard about since childhood. I was not disappointed and my wife and kids loved it too. I just didn't have enough time to see everything I wanted to, so when I came home I wanted to buy a book with great photos and a bit of explanation for the layman. This book certainly does that although as a layman I don't know what serious students of architecture would make of it