Gaudi, who strikes a chord with both science and humanities types. I realized he is called a genius, but he is also a hard worker. [Gaudi Exhibition]

As an office worker who is an architecture geek, I'll write a report on my visit to the
Gaudi Exhibition🙌

To put my impressions simply...

• Gaudi is not just a genius limited to the field of architecture; he is a genius who uses both his right and left brain to conceive new things and, what's more, brings them to life.

• He isn't just an artist specialized in sensibility who relies on inspiration; he also doesn't neglect the hard work of learning the basics.

Honestly, as a working professional, I truly respect him. As someone involved in new business development, I was extremely inspired.

If Gaudi were doing business instead of architecture, I bet he would have been constantly releasing incredibly innovative new products and services to the world.

Speaking of Gaudi, there's the Sagrada Familia.

I had the impression that the Sagrada Familia was a masterpiece of Gothic architecture (soaring spires, stained glass), which I love, so as a complete amateur, I initially thought, 'If he designed the Sagrada Familia, was he a specialist in Gothic architecture?'

However, last year, after watching a TV program where Mana Ashida did on-site reporting, I learned about the organic columns that branch out like tree limbs to support the ceiling, the fact that there are multiple facades (fronts) each with a completely different impression, and the attention to detail in placing an abnormal number of sculptures, each with its own meaning (and, of course, balancing them asymmetrically rather than symmetrically), and I got excited, thinking,
The Sagrada Familia wasn't just some cool Gothic architecture! It has so much storytelling! Oh, I love it! I absolutely have to go see it!!.

Also, shortly after watching the program, an acquaintance posted a photo of Casa Batlló on their Instagram story, and I was struck by it, thinking,
What is this cute building!!! It's exactly my type!!! How can the design and colors be so cute!!!
. When I looked it up and found out it was a work by Gaudi, I decided,
I must go to Barcelona while I'm in my 20s, no matter what!!.

Then one day, I learned that a Gaudi exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of his death would be held, and that it would also come to the Osaka venue, so even before it started in Tokyo 😂, I put the exhibition period for the Osaka venue into my schedule.

And then, the long-awaited day arrived.
I approached it with the intention of reading through every single exhibit.

The first exhibit touched on Gaudi's childhood.
It seems he was a boy who spent his time carefully observing light and living things because he grew up in the countryside (an environment rich in nature).

There were also many 3D exhibits of architectural motifs inspired by nature.

What I and my companion were particularly excited about was the architectural motif of the garlic-shaped ventilation tower. 🧄

We were initially hooked by the fact that it was visually interesting, but it turns out it has
incredible functionality, and because the tip of the ventilation tower is shaped like a garlic bulb with holes in it, it is
better at exhausting air from inside the building than a simple tube!

I believe that for artists, if their sensibility is sharp, they are sufficiently evaluated just for bringing it down to a prototype, but
to complete it all by himself to the point of giving it functionality?

Wait, so he's not just strong in sensibility, but also in logic? (Shocking)

As someone involved in new business,
I think it's wonderful that when creating something new, he doesn't just design by stacking up logic, but creates with the idea of receiving inspiration from the outside (nature) and incorporating it into the product.

And on top of that, the functionality is perfect too...! 🧐

I really can't help but admire him. No wonder he's called a genius.

After that, in the wall display corner,
the basic information on Gaudi's architecture was explained as 'highly original modernist architecture that incorporates organic forms from the natural world while basing itself on historical styles such as Romanesque and Gothic styles'.

Yeah, I kind of had the image that he based his work on the Gothic style.
But when I looked closely, I was surprised.

Romanesque stylewas the foundation!?

The buildings I've seen recently that are Romanesque style are

...Wait, the Romanesque style is that super old style that started in the late 10th century, right? The one where they were like, 'Let's try building tall stone buildings!'?
It was an architectural style that emerged right after building materials shifted from wood to stone, and because stone is heavy, the walls were thick and the windows were small. I had an image of it being aplain, warehouse-like buildingthat was quite the opposite of Gothic, you know?

Gaudi was making stuff like that too...?

It's seriously diverse.
He's not just an expert, he's a generalist in a sense...

Still, I thought he really liked older architectural styles like Romanesque and Gothic. But then

in the next section, a blueprint for a full-blownBaroque stylebuilding appeared and Ifell over. 🫠 It seems to be a blueprint Gaudi drew when he was a student, perhaps shown for the first time...

There's a dome, there are curly decorations on top of the pillars, and it looks luxurious—he's really drawing a blueprint for a Baroque-style church.

Moreover, it's sketched carefully down to the details, and if you look closely, isn't that a plant-like pattern on the fence? Wait, is thisArt Nouveau style?

I heard he based his work on Romanesque (10th–13th century) and Gothic (12th–15th century) architecture, but he also mastered Baroque (17th–18th century) and Art Nouveau (19th–20th century)...

Somehow, great people really do follow theShuhariprinciple thoroughly, and I was impressed that he had gone through all the basics of architectural styles. I'm moved. Standing ovation. 👏

Myrespectfor Gaudi has increased even more.

The section where you can experience the hanging chain experiment both analog and digitally was also interesting.
I was excited because I thought, 'This is the one I saw on the TV show!'

Combined with the colors and such, it looks likeMermaid Lagoon🐚 at DisneySea.

Actually, don't Gaudi'sCasa BatllóandPark Güelllook likeMermaid Lagoon?

When I looked it up, it seems the design and mosaic patterns made of tiles for King Triton's Castle in Mermaid Lagoon (a castle made of coral that just came up from the sea) were modeled afterGaudi's works!! Seriously!!!

The church chair (a replica?) that Mana Ashida sat on in the TV show was also on display, and I was overjoyed to be able to actually sit in it.
*However, although the chair is designed based on ergonomics, perhaps because I sat in it in the exhibition room, I didn't feel the psychological effect on faith that was mentioned on the show... I want to sit in it on-site someday for a rematch...

Towards the end, there was a space with a giant screen, and it was also interesting to experience how mosaic patterns like the lizards in Park Güell were generated in my footprints as I walked on the floor.

Including these, the second half was an experiential art space that could be enjoyed even if you had almost zero knowledge of Gaudi or architecture.

There was also a gift shop, and I bought a mug I fell in love with at first sight.

Although I had already decided before, my desire thatI must go to Barcelona in my 20s no matter what!!has grown stronger. 🔥

Following Gaudi's example, who calculates even functionality into unique designs that don't fit into systematized architectural styles, I aim to power up even more...!

☆The End☆