Everything you need to know for your visit to Casa Calvet

Casa Calvet was designed by Antoni Gaudí for the heirs of the textile manufacturer Pere Màrtir Calvet. The family bought a plot of land on Casp Street at the end of the 19th century. This was the first of several of Gaudí’s works in l’Eixample, and the only one to win the Barcelona City Council’s award for best house of the year.

When Casa Calvet was built, the Eixample area was considered the perfect place for the new buildings of the Barcelona bourgeoisie, so Gaudí had to design something that would fit in with the luxurious buildings around it, which is why it is considered his most conservative work.

The building was divided into a basement and a first floor where the textile business was located, the main floor was the owner’s home and the upper floors were rental apartments, which was a very common distribution at that time.

Initially, the plans for the building were not approved by the city council, as they exceeded the maximum height allowed. In response, the architect drew a red line where the height limit was, threatening to leave it unfinished if he had to reduce it to that height. The threat worked, as the city council let him continue with the original plan.

In 1927 the building was sold to another family, and years later, the main establishment became a Chinese restaurant that is still active today.