Review: Casa Vicens

Zoom out. What’s this place all about?
Wildly colorful ceramic flowers? And tiles that look like a green and white chessboard? No, we haven’t been tippling the lunchtime vermouth—this is the feeling upon discovering Casa Vicens down an unsuspecting side street in arty Gràcia district. Built in the 1880s as a summerhouse for stockbroker Manel Vicens, it was the very first house Gaudí designed. Following a refurb, it opened in November 2017 as a museum space and a fascinating house to snoop around. Forget the Gaudí of La Sagrada Família fame, this is his Orientalist Period. What’s it like? Imagine a Moorish palace married a Rubik’s cube and had a child. It’s crazy.

What kind of crazy are we talking?
Anyone who’s a fan of tiles or maximalist design will geek out on the (dare we say jumble of) oriental palms, pink walls, flower-adorned tiles and flying birds. Add in a terracotta roof terrace, a couple of elaborate domes, and some Gaudí ironwork and you’re left wondering how it all harmonizes together. Because, weirdly, it does.

And now that it's a museum, what are the exhibits like?
There are two more floors for exhibits—white-walled, beautifully lit spaces that are blank canvases; trying to compete or coordinate with the house décor would simply look try-hard. One interesting exhibit shows other design-pioneering personal houses from around the world.

What did you make of the crowd?
Casa Vicens is still gloriously off-radar; there’s a small crowd devoted to really soaking in what’s hypnotizing their eyes. Expect numbers to multiply as word spreads.

Any guided tours worth trying?
You can arrange a guided tour for an additional €3 (on top of the €18 entrance fee, which is already quite steep). Though the house is full of staff itching to answer questions. Look out for special ‘experience’ tickets, too, such as having a photoshoot while inside, or an architectural drawing lesson from multilingual urban sketcher, Daniel Pagans. 

Gift shop: obligatory, inspiring—or skip it?
In order to exit and see the gardens (both essential), you have to wander through the shop. That could be off-putting, were it not for the fact that this is one of the very best gift shops in town. More a design boutique than a blatant money-grabber, you’ll find talking-point items such as pottery by local ceramicists, as well as packs of seeds of the flowers represented in Gaudí’s tiles. 

Is there a café, or should we just plan on going elsewhere?
There is a small café, and ice creams served in summer. But for a failsafe sweet or savory fix, plus excellent coffee, walk six minutes to Coush Armo bakery; there, a smile and some frankly legendary sourdough bread await you. 

Any advice for the time- or attention-challenged?
Including photo ops and a scan of the exhibits, you’re done in an hour. Expect to leave questioning how much it would cost to commission floral wall tiles.