When Antoni Gaudí is restored there is always room for surprises. This is what happened during the restoration process of the rear façade of one of his most universal works, the Batlló house.
This intervention, still in progress, has allowed its original colors to be revealed, which will change its chromatic appearance as it was known until now. Thus, the dark gray wrought iron fences and balconies have become practically white, the yellowish stuccos are now dark gray while the green wood of the windows has given way to a white color.
“We already had signs, but when you start working you see the dimension of the change. What was light has become dark and the dark has become light. That is, as if it were a total and absolute negative of the façade that we knew until now,” highlights Xavier Villanueva, the architect responsible for the work.
Another discovery has been more technical and structural. This is the system of beams that supports the balconies. “Instead of working with the corbel concept, like almost all of them, they do it with cable ties. It is something very particular and with a Catalan vault. “Personally, it is the first time that I am familiar with this specific system in Gaudí's work,” adds Villanueva.
In fact, it is the first comprehensive restoration of the rear façade since 1906, when Gaudí renovated the previous home for the Batlló family. The intervention, with an investment of 3.5 million euros, began in November and is expected to conclude this fall.
As in other interventions previously carried out in the house, visitors can see firsthand the work carried out by the restorers. To do this, a walkable scaffolding has been set up on the roof decorated with a flowered parabolic pergola. During the tour, a temporary exhibition on the rear façade also debuted on the fifth floor.
According to the managers of the house, a Unesco world heritage site since 2005, the rear façade symbolizes a flowering climbing plant with its trencadís on the sides while the wavy iron balconies linked in a symbolic way would evoke the branches of the plant.
