1904 to 1906
Antoni Gaudí
Barcelona, Spain

Casa Batlló
Copyright © Mary Ann Sullivan
Digital Imaging Project

Each of the three adjacent houses on one block of Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona was designed by a different Modernista architect. The tremendously differing styles of these buildings led to the nickname Mançana de la Discòrdia (mançana means both "apple" and "block" in Catalan).

Josep Batlló hired Gaudí to remodel Casa Batlló, the center building, in order to divide it into apartments. Gaudí added a fifth floor, completely revamped the interior, depressed the roof, and added a new façade. The enlarged windows and thin columns gave rise to the nicknames Casa dels badalls (House of yawns) and Casa dels ossos (House of bones), respectively.

The stone façade is decorated with colored glass fragments, ceramic circles, and mask-shaped balconies, while the undulating, scaled roof is reminiscent of a dragon's back.

Casas Batlló and Mila, designed by Gaudí within the space of a few years, are on the same street and share some typical Gaudí features, notably the waviness of the exterior façades and "scooped out" windows.

Life and Works of Antoni Gaudí