UNESCO World Heritage Site – Works of Antoni Gaudí and Park Güell

The iconic lizard sculpture designed by Antoni Gaudí at Park Güell, set before one of the park's pavilions; above it, the state name 'ESPAÑA' and the inscription 'PARK GÜELL – GAUDÍ', along with the year '2014' and the mint mark.

Antoni Gaudí ranks among the most influential architects of the modern era — not despite his radical individuality, but because of it. Born in Reus in 1852, the Catalan architect developed an organic style that defies classical categories: neither pure historicism nor straightforward Art Nouveau, but a formal language shaped by nature, Catalanism, and deep religiosity. His works in and around Barcelona — including the Sagrada Família, Casa Batlló, Casa Milà, and Park Güell — were jointly recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage in 1984. Park Güell is internationally known above all for its colorful mosaic work, its curving main terrace, and the figurative ceramic sculptures that Gaudí designed together with his longtime collaborator Josep Maria Jujol. Originally planned as a private residential estate for Barcelona's upper class, the project failed commercially; the city of Barcelona took over the grounds in 1923 and opened it as a public park.

Park Güell lies in the Gràcia district in the north of Barcelona and is today one of the most visited sites in Spain. Gaudí's body of work permanently shaped the cityscape of Barcelona and made the Catalan metropolis a reference point for architectural expressionism in Europe. His influence reaches far beyond Spain: Gaudí's principle of treating construction and ornament as a unity influenced later generations of architects and designers worldwide. Spain's UNESCO World Heritage series honored the entire ensemble of Gaudí's buildings in Barcelona with this 2014 issue — works that, a century after their creation, have lost none of their impact.