Description:
The Güell Park was a designed by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi and created between 1904 and 1908. It achieves a singular symbiosis between Architecture and Nature, having been declared a National Monument in 1969, and Patrimony of Humanity by the UNESCO in 1984. It has been restored on a number of occasions over the last 30 years, mainly due to problems associated with rainwater disposal, but it is hoped that the present thorough restoration undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Ministry of Culture between 1987 and 1994 will assure the survival of this singluar monument well into the next century. The situation of the Park prior to the undertaking of this work was of advanced decay of metal structures and ceramic cladding, with the penetration of rainwater into structures, particularly the Sala Hipostila, and erosion damage and wear to the ceramic features . The Official Architects' Society of Catalonia drew up a report in October 1985, analysing the pathology of the constructions, and this was the basis of subsequent work. While the geometry of Gaudi' s creations was respected, they were consolidated and reinforced. With the assistance of the Museo de Ceramica de Cataluna {Ceramic Museum of Catalonia ), the decayed ceramic work was replaced where necessary, including areas replaced in a previous restoration, when an inappropriate type of ceramic had been used.