Domenech was commissioned by Morera to remodel the house which was originally built in 1864. The project was started in 1902 and completed in 1906. Unfortunately, the lower floor of the house was mutilated in 1943 by Loewe, a leather goods retailer, and most of the interior decor and furnishing were stripped. The second floor has been preserved, it features ceramic mosaics and wonderful stained glass.
Hospital de La Santa Creu I Sant Peu
Completed in 1910, this was Domenech’s largest project. The site was 360 acres and Domenich wanted to design a garden city within the grid city of the Eixample. He wanted colour, trees, fresh air and a sense of the earth underfoot for the patients.
Domenech’s design was brilliant, he excavated the site and put all of the service areas and corridors underground. A series of pavilions rose up over the service areas with each pavilion linked to the service net. This way, the separate pavilions could easily isolate infectious patients without exposing the entire hospital, it also made the hospital feel like a village.
He created a feeling of care which is noticeable upon entering the reception block, the facade glitters with mosaic murals depicting the history of the hospital from the middle ages. Inside the reception area, octagonal columns with floral capitals bear shallow domes faced with dusty pink tiles.
On the left is a broad staircase that leads to the administrative offices, the space is bathed in golden light from a large stained glass skylight. This space feels ceremonious, exciting and optimistic; whereas, among the pavilions, the feeling is one of intimacy as well as care. Domenech believed that anything that could give a feeling of well being to the sick was a form of therapy.
The coloured pavilion domes were day rooms for mobile patients and their families. The tiled interior vaults of the wards were serene, peaceful, cool and repetitive. Inside is rest, outside is optimism. Gardens also figured prominently in the design, Domenich planned two gardens per pavilion for the patients to relax in.
The facility underwent dramatic modifications to accommodate modern medical technology, unfortunately, this damaged the design to a great degree. There has been a massive restoration of the site and many pavilions are now occupied by international organizations involved in healthcare, education and sustainability.
This is an incredible Moderniste site, we absolutely loved it. The brickwork and ceramics are extraordinary. For a hospital, it is in sharp contrast to the sterile, dull and hostile environments that pass for medical facilities at home.
Entrance Facade
Reception Area
Incredible Staircase
Staircase stained glass and ceramic ceiling
Staircase ceiling detail
Endless ceramics
Lovely ceramic ceiling
Patient pavilion that has not been restored
Garden and Pavilions
Pavilion detail
Domed patient day-room
Patient Pavilion
Subterranean service area
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