Palau Güell, #12, Barcelona, 2021
Hidden Away
Of Gaudí’s many unique-bizzaro-funky architectural works in Barcelona, the Sagrada Familia Temple, Park Güell, Casa Milà (La Pedrera), and Casa Batlló are probably the top four in terms of the pitter-patter count of tourist feet.
The subject of today’s post, Palau Güell, tends to go unnoticed by many–perhaps because it is stashed away in a random narrow street just off of La Rambla? Out of sight, out of mind, maybe? Or was it simply forgotten while closed during so many years of renovation? Even when one stands directly across from the Palau Güell, in the alleyway that is Carrer Nou de la Rambla, it’s hard to really see the structure, crammed as it is between a host of other unremarkable buildings.
Hidden away…
Built between 1886 and 1890, this opulent mansion was the residence of the extremely wealthy Eusebi Güell, Gaudí’s famous patron.
My big curiosity as I admired the extravagance: Just where did Eusebi get all of his wealth? After all, the Palau had to have cost a major-league fortune to build. Hmmm… an interesting question. His father, from whom he inherited much of his wealth, was busy in Cuba… so, think slaves, business deals with big cigars, and so on. Beyond the Catalans who did this (referred to as “indianos” when they came back from the Americas with their huge fortunes), how many upper class families in the United States also got their start on the backs of the slaves? This part of American and world history is only now starting to be discussed, having been white-washed–so-to-speak–for decades and centuries.
Keep that in the back of your cranium as you pad through the gilded halls in your comfortable touring shoes.
The Visit
From 2004 through 2011 the Palau Güell was closed for renovations. Well worth it, though (IMHO), as it has now been restored to all its gaudy Gaudí glory.
Plan on a couple of hours to see the works, including the rooftop. (Try to avoid a rainy day as they tend to close that slippery brick rooftop for safety reasons, and you won’t want to miss it.)
For the latest details on hours, price, current exhibits, etc., see their website at Palau Güell, Antoni Gaudí.
Some Photography Notes
On this day, I thought I’d see how well the iPhone XS would do, so I left the heavy camera gear at home.
If you are a typical DSLR user, you would find plenty of subject matter here for the holy trinity of lenses (14-24mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm), but leave the tripod–not allowed.
Overall, I was quite surprised at what my iPhone XS could do in making acceptable web-sized photographs–from the very dark basement area, to the sunny bright rooftop. The newer iPhone 12 Pro sounds like it could be even more of a game-changer with its three different built-in lenses (wide, normal, tele). Still, nothing beats a good DSLR for low-light performance, overall flexibility/creativity, and enlargement/cropping options. So, it will all depend on what you want to do with your images.
The Photo Tour
If you arrived on your horse to visit the Güell family back around 1900, you left your beast here in this beautiful basement with the livery guy, having led your horse down that spiral staircase (it’s actually a ramp, not a a stairway) from the double entrance gates above:
Palau Güell, #2, Barcelona, 2021
Rolling out the red carpet for the guests climbing up to the main floor:
Palau Güell, #7, Barcelona, 2021
The woodwork throughout is exceptional, especially in the ceilings. This kind of specialized carpentry had to be extremely expensive. I cloned out the smoke detectors to eliminate modern distractions:
Palau Güell, #8, Barcelona, 2021
Palau Güell, #10, Barcelona, 2021
Palau Güell, #18, Barcelona, 2021
More custom carpentry:
Palau Güell, #22, Barcelona, 2021
This is the ceiling of the main room in the center of the building. Here is where the Güell family received guests, entertained, listened to music (there is a pipe organ installed) and danced the night away. It takes more than a few minutes of careful observation to take in all the ornate details. You may suffer from a bit of sensory overload along with a stiff neck from looking up:
Palau Güell, #13, Barcelona, 2021
Looking out toward Carrer Nou de La Rambla from the main room. Here, you are one very tall floor level above the street:
Palau Güell, #15, Barcelona, 2021
More detail of the main room. I liked the added detail of the tourist photographing from the window on the right:
Palau Güell, #16, Barcelona, 2021
A close-up of the pipe organ–which we heard briefly during our Saturday visit. Apparently, though, it is a recording that is timed to go off every half hour–the actual organ is not played, except (one supposes) during special events:
Palau Güell, #24, Barcelona, 2021
Looking through the doorways of the various rooms on the main level, you can see in the distance the well-known, and dramatically-scary, painting, Hèrcules buscant les Hespèrides (Hercules looking for the Hesperides, c. 1892), by Aleix Clapés:
Palau Güell, #19, Barcelona, 2021
This dining room set actually belonged to the Güell family–it isn’t just a prop:
Palau Güell, #20, Barcelona, 2021
The glass work in all of Gaudí’s buildings are always quite original. This one reminds me of what could be a modern Coca Cola or Bud Lite ad, but with a slight scent of the medieval ages:
Palau Güell, #21, Barcelona, 2021
The sitting/conversation room, or sala de confiança, on the bedroom level of the building sports a fireplace over which stands a mosaic of Saint Elizabeth, Queen of Hungary, by Alexandre de Riquer:
Palau Güell, #23, Barcelona, 2021
More ornate and gilded woodwork:
Palau Güell, #25, Barcelona, 2021
The doorway leading out of Isabel’s (Eusebi’s wife) bedroom:
Palau Güell, #26, Barcelona, 2021
I believe this is a bidet, imported from Paris, and not an actual toilet:
Palau Güell, #28, Barcelona, 2021
Here is a postcard sample of the work of Catalan painter Aleix Clapés, one of Gaudí’s preferred artists. Through the 30th of May, 2021, a number of his works are on display on the upper floor (attic) of the mansion:
A jolly highlight of the visit (especially for the kids in all of us–and the real kids) is to stroll about on the undulating roof of Palau Güell, enjoying the views of Barcelona around, over,and across the surrounding mostly-ugly buildings. The ornate “mushrooms” you see on the rooftop are simply hiding chimneys–and they say there are 20 of them:
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