Antoni Gaudí's Barcelona - Palau Güell

GAUDÍ'S BARCELONA - A PERSONAL TOUR PART 2 At age 26 Antoni Gaudí met Eusebi Güell i Bacigalupi, a wealthy Catalan industrialist, politician and patron of the arts. That meeting would have an influence on Gaudí's career that extended for many years and commissions from Güell ultimately gave rise to some of Gaudí's most renowned creations including several that bear his name; Palau Güell, Parque Güell and the ...

Antoni Gaudí's Barcelona - Casa Batlló

GAUDÍ'S BARCELONA - A PERSONAL TOUR PART 1 Recently I was fortunate enough to be able to take a long vacation in Europe. A long lazy week in Barcelona before a Mediterranean cruise sailing out of the port there afforded me the opportunity to experience firsthand some of Antoni Gaudí's outstanding and unique work. Camera in hand I was able to visit several Gaudí sites and that has afforded me the opportunity to add a series of ...

Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Some of the most magnificent structures ever conceived were built in the Middle Ages. Few modern structures can match the awe inspiring gothic cathedrals of Europe. These massive monuments to times past were often constructed over decades and sometimes over hundreds of years; generations of craftsmen dedicated their lives to the projects never to see the final glory of the completed cathedrals. Take York Minster for example; started in 1220 the current cathedral took ...

Kosovo National Library, Prishtina, Kosovo

I came across a picture of this building the other day while browsing on Flickr. The caption just read "Cool Building" and there was no location info but since the photo included the plaque on the front it was easily identifiable as the Biblioteka Kombëtare, Republika e Kosovës [English translation] or, in language I can understand, the National & University Library Of Kosovo located in the capital of Kosovo, Prishtina. It looks for all the world like someone took a giant net and draped it over the building; the...

Kuchlbauer's Bierwelt, Abensberg, Germany

Breweries are not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about unique and inspired architecture but for German brewer Leonhard Salleck that was precisely what happened in the late 1990's. The Kuchlbauer´s Bierwelt has, to say the least, a lengthy history and can trace it origins back to the late 1400's. More recently the brewery has been in the Salleck family since 1904. The brewery brews specialty "Weissbier" or Wheat Beer and, while it is a relatively small operation, it is ...

Kunsthaus Graz, Graz, Austria

Completed in 2003 the Kunsthaus Graz is a strange and yet very striking building. Affectionately dubbed the "Friendly Alien" by its creators its amoebic like form is a perfect example of what is sometimes termed "blob architecture" or "Blobitecture". The building was designed by architects Peter Cook and Colin Fournier and they had more up their sleeve than just the creativity of the building's organic form when they formulated their plans. The entire eastern side of the building forms a high tech visual ...

Biorama aka The Water Tower House

Around 10 years or so ago while cycling Richard Hurding spotted an old run down water tower in the Schorfheide-Chorin Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO nature reserve outside the town of Joachimsthal some 45 miles or so from the German capital, Berlin. Harding and his wife Sarah Philips, though both British, had worked in and explored many parts of the world and were looking for a new place to live. They had just found it. Both Harding and Philips were industrial designers ...

Hotel Marqués de Riscal, Elciego, Spain

Located in north central Spain the Rioja region is famed for its production of Rioja wines. The Rioja Denominación de Origen Calificada is named for the province of La Rioja though the wines are actually produced in three northern Spanish provinces; La Rioja, Navarre and Álava. In the province of Álava The Frank O. Gehry designed Hotel Marques de Riscal adds a touch of the ultra modern to the small, traditional town of Elciego. Erected in 2006 the hotel was a part of a plan to ...

Durham Cathedral, Durham, United Kingdom

There is not much in the way of architecture that can top some of the magnificent medieval cathedrals around Europe and one of the most magnificent is Durham Cathedral in the north of England. It is astounding that buildings such as this were constructed given the technology of the time; they would probably be challenging to build even now. The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, to give it its full name, was founded in the year 1093. That's over ...

Krzywy Domek aka "The Crooked House", Sopot, Poland

A combination of mall, restaurant row and office building the Krzywy Domek is located in the city of Sopot, Poland. Although the building is relatively young it is already extremely well known around the world and has become a local icon. Built in 2004 the Krzywy Domek aka "The Crooked House" is located in Sopot, Poland. Part of a larger shopping center the building houses restaurants, shops and offices on four levels encompassing some 43,000 square feet [Wikipedia]. The architects...