Restoration rejuvenates iconic Gaudi house in Barcelona
Previous refurbishments, changes of owner and the turbulent period marked by Spain's 1936-1939 civil war had taken their toll on the unique building completed in 1906.
A team of architects, historians and artisans spent more than a year repairing the bright mosaics and restoring the original cream-coloured hue to the blackened curvy balcony bars.
The result is "the most similar to 1906 that we have been able to achieve with today's technology", Xavier Villanueva, the chief architect and official in charge of the works, told AFP.
In the courtyard, the pergola replicates a parabola shape and more than 85,000 pieces make up the paving, "hand made one by one, as it was originally", Villanueva said.
The painstaking task meant the team "carried out a lot of analyses in several university laboratories, many prospections, we have lots of documentary information", he said.
The restoration cost 3.5 million euros ($4 million), according to Casa Batllo, which is in a fashionable neighbourhood of Barcelona frequented by the city's bourgeoisie and wealthy industrialists in the early 20th century.
A UNESCO-listed site since 2005, Casa Batllo welcomed 1.9 million visitors last year, making it one of the most popular attractions in a city known as a global tourism magnet.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
6 hours ago
- France 24
Restoration rejuvenates iconic Gaudi house in Barcelona
Previous refurbishments, changes of owner and the turbulent period marked by Spain's 1936-1939 civil war had taken their toll on the unique building completed in 1906. A team of architects, historians and artisans spent more than a year repairing the bright mosaics and restoring the original cream-coloured hue to the blackened curvy balcony bars. The result is "the most similar to 1906 that we have been able to achieve with today's technology", Xavier Villanueva, the chief architect and official in charge of the works, told AFP. In the courtyard, the pergola replicates a parabola shape and more than 85,000 pieces make up the paving, "hand made one by one, as it was originally", Villanueva said. The painstaking task meant the team "carried out a lot of analyses in several university laboratories, many prospections, we have lots of documentary information", he said. The restoration cost 3.5 million euros ($4 million), according to Casa Batllo, which is in a fashionable neighbourhood of Barcelona frequented by the city's bourgeoisie and wealthy industrialists in the early 20th century. A UNESCO-listed site since 2005, Casa Batllo welcomed 1.9 million visitors last year, making it one of the most popular attractions in a city known as a global tourism magnet.
France 24
11 hours ago
- France 24
Floods expected after Hurricane Erick makes landfall in western Mexico
The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 125 miles (205 kilometers) per hour as it hit just east of Punta Maldonado, the NHC said in a post on social media. By 1200 GMT, Erick was moving northwest at a speed of nearly nine miles (15 kilometers) per hour, and was expected to continue making its way inland over southern Mexico through the day. Heavy rainfall was expected to cause "life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain" in Oaxaca and Guerrero states, the NHC said. A "life-threatening storm surge" was expected to cause coastal flooding near where the storm made landfall. "Erick is expected to rapidly weaken over the mountains of Mexico, and the system is likely to dissipate tonight or early Friday," the center's advisory added. Mexican authorities said they were also expecting heavy rain in southernmost state Chiapas. President Claudia Sheinbaum urged people to avoid going out and advised those living in low-lying areas or near rivers to move to shelters. In Acapulco, a major port and resort city famous for its nightlife, police with bullhorns walked the beach and drove around town warning residents and holidaymakers of the storm's arrival. Some shops boarded up their windows and operators of tourist boats brought their vessels ashore. Rainfall began in the late afternoon after a sunny day on Wednesday. About 250 miles (400 kilometers) south of Acapulco, the city of Puerto Escondido and its 30,000 inhabitants braced for the hurricane's effects. Restaurants were already closed despite tourists unwilling to give up their vacations, an AFP journalist noted from the scene. "They say it's going to hit this side of the coast, so we're taking precautions to avoid having any regrets later," Adalberto Ruiz, a 55-year-old fisherman sheltering his boat, told AFP. Laura Velazquez, national coordinator of civil protection, said the government was using patrols and social media to warn people. Some 2,000 temporary shelters have been set up in Chiapas, Guerrero and Oaxaca, and hundreds of troops and electricity workers have been deployed to help with any clean-up efforts. Local authorities have suspended classes and closed ports along the coast, including the port of Acapulco, to shipping. Mexico sees major storms every year, usually between May and November, on both its Pacific and Atlantic coasts. In October 2023, Acapulco was pummeled by Hurricane Otis, a powerful Category 5 storm that killed at least 50 people. Hurricane John, another Category 3 storm that hit Acapulco in September last year, caused about 15 deaths.
LeMonde
18 hours ago
- LeMonde
In Lyon, public transport returns to the Saône River
"It feels like a childhood dream come true." Usually terse and serious, Bruno Bernard appeared deeply moved as he officially inaugurated France's very first river public transport line on Wednesday, June 18, in Lyon. "This is an important moment – we are reconnecting with a distant past," said the president of the Grand Lyon agglomeration (Les Ecologistes, the Green party) and of the transport authority SYTRAL Mobilités, as he boarded one of the four 70-seat shuttles operated by Lyon's public transport network (TCL). The vessels will run along the Saône every day of the week, from the Confluence district in the South of Lyon to Vaise in the North. The official had not included this mode of transport in his policy platform during the 2020 elections. "Technical studies showed us that it was possible, and the mayor of Lyon was very keen!" Bernard added, nudging Lyon's Green mayor, Grégory Doucet. "We are continuing our efforts to decarbonize transport and reconnect with our rivers," the official continued, dressed in a white shirt and sunglasses, hair blowing in the wind, captivated by the enchanting journey at a top speed of 12 kilometers per hour between the UNESCO World Heritage-listed buildings.
