In Focus - Discover Spain: Experience the Best of Spain - page 605

Modernista Madness
At the end of the 19th century, Catalonia was the powerhouse of the country. Into
this optimistic time stepped a group of architects known as the Modernistas. Lead-
ing the way was Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926), who sprinkled Barcelona with exotic
creations such as his immense, and still unfinished, La Sagrada Família, along with
Casa Batlló and La Pedrera.
Gaudí was by no means the only Catalan Modernista master to leave his mark on
Barcelona. Lluís Domènech i Montaner (1850-1923), for example, was behind the
stunning Palau de la Música Catalana and the Hospital de la Santa Creu i de Sant
Pau. For more Modernista masterpieces, see the boxed text on Click here while the
boxed text on Click here provides historical context on Modernisme in Barcelona.
Contemporary creations
International experts are buzzing with the energy and creativity surrounding Span-
ish architecture. At one level, Spanish architects such as Santiago Calatrava (who
transformed Valencia and built the Olympic stadium in Athens) are taking the world
by storm. At the same time, architects from all over the world are clamouring for
Spanish contracts, in part because the projects for urban renewal currently under-
way in Spain are some of the most innovative in Europe, and municipal govern-
ments are funding this extraordinary explosion of architectural ambition.
One to watch for the future is Sir Norman Foster's new-look Camp Nou stadium,
the home ground of FC Barcelona. The overhaul will create a kind of glow-in-the-
dark sponge-cake affair and is planned for completion in 2012.