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Joan Maragall Gardens, photo by Òscar Giralt courtesy of Ajuntament de Barcelona (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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Joan Maragall Gardens, photo by Vicente Zambrano González courtesy of Ajuntament de Barcelona (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
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Joan Maragall Gardens, photo by Òscar Giralt courtesy of Ajuntament de Barcelona (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
When the Spanish royal family comes to visit the city, they stay in the Albéniz Palace, which is surrounded by the gorgeous Joan Maragall Gardens. Both were built in 1929 for the International Exhibition in Barcelona that year.
The Gardens
Designed by French landscape architect Jean-Claude-Nicolas Forestier and his protégé Nicolau Maria Rubió i Tudurí, the gardens are some of the most beautiful, as well as the most peaceful, in the city.
Forestier was known for his designs incorporating wide, manicured lawns, rows of shade trees, local as well as exotic plants, and ornamental sculptures in his designs, creating environments where the beauty of nature is showcased alongside man-made wonders. This was in keeping with the early 20th-century fascination with the juxtaposition of man and the natural world, as well as the blend of aesthetics and functionality.
Paths covered in granite sand lead visitors past impressive examples of both. Mediterranean plants such as olive, cypress, orange, pine and holm oak trees are mixed with imported exotic flora, such as sago palms, lindens, cedars, pepper trees and magnolias. A total of thirty-two notable statues by mostly Catalan artists from different eras are dotted throughout the gardens. Fountains with cherubs and dolphins are situated in shady spots that invite visitors to stop and rest.
The entrance gate at Avenida del Estadi, 69—right by the Olympic stadium, as the name implies—opens up onto wide expanses of green grass bordered by an avenue of magnolia trees with a pond in the middle of it.
The lawns and paths have been carefully landscaped to slope down to the palace at the heart of the gardens. An esplanade extends in front of the main façade of the palace, with two curving staircases ascending from the gardens to the terrace leading into the building’s main entrance.
Palauet-Albéniz-and-Joan-Maragall-Gardens photo-by-Mariona-Gil-courtesy-of-Ajuntament-de-Barcelona-(CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0).
The Palace
The Palauet (“little palace”) stands out among the buildings for its neoclassical style. After the International Exposition ended, the former “Royal Pavilion” was renamed for virtuosic composer and pianist Isaac Albéniz, when plans were briefly entertained by the city to house a Museum of Music in the building. A musical prodigy, Albéniz was one of the most important 19th-century, post-Romantic composers in Spain.
The palace was constructed by the architect Joan Moya Indígoras to house King Alfonso XIII and his family during the 1929 Exposition. Until then, the royal residence had traditionally been the Palau de Pedralbes, but the royal family felt it was appropriate to spend time on the fairgrounds and greet international guests during this prestigious, momentous event. The slate roofs and stone and brick walls of the “Royal Pavilion” were inspired by the Bourbons’ preferred look of the Spanish court—specifically, the Palacios de La Granja de San Ildefonso, de Santa Cruz, de los Consejos, and El Monasterio El Escorial—rather than Mediterranean architecture. However, the pair of imposing lion sculptures guarding the wrought-iron entrance gate were borrowed from the Palau de Pedralbes. The gate is topped by the Royal Coat of Arms, declaring the official nature of the building for all to see.
The inside of the palace was decorated with pieces from the Spanish Royal Armory during the Expo, as well as elaborate tapestries, furniture, and other pieces intended to represent Spain’s economic might, military history, and sense of culture. Many of these tapestries were woven representations of drawings by one of Spain’s most famous artists, Francisco Goya; today, these hang in the part of the palace appropriately called the “Hall of Goya.”
Just like the outer façade, the rest of the inside of the building is decorated in a style that reflects what were the Crown’s tastes a century ago, but the inside decorations and furnishings feature a number of Catalan works of fine art and craftsmanship. The Ramón Casas Hall is so named for being decorated with drawings and paintings by the artist; it is also referred to as the Yellow Hall, because it’s essentially a copy of the same room in the Casita del Principe (El Pardo) in Madrid. This space is a former dining room, and features a bright, elaborately decorated ceiling, and formal Empire-style chairs to welcome illustrious guests.
The Hall of Mirrors is also a copy, this time of the King’s Dressing Room in the Royal Palace of Aranjuez—apparently, the Spanish monarchs were creatures of habit and enjoyed feeling at home wherever they were—it, like the original, features floor to ceiling mirrors.
The Golden Room is decorated with 17th-century inlaid furniture, massive chandeliers, and golden (hence the name), scrollwork and cornices, while The Hall of Busts features Roman emperors and goddesses that observe comings and goings of royalty, guests, and underlings alike. The ceiling is yet another reference to the Royal Palace of La Granja de San Ildelfonso, decorated with golden stuccoes that imitate the Royal Palace during the 18th-century reign of King Phillip V.
The center of the palace is occupied by a wide salon with Italian marble floors and decorated with 18th-century tapestries; it’s the crown jewel of the whole palace, topped with a multicolored dome created by famed glassmaker Carlos Muñoz de Pablos. This visually spectacular homage to Spain’s past is based on a similar dome in the Royal Palace dating back to the early 19th century reign of King Ferdinand VII.
Renovations
The Palauet stood empty during the brief life of the Second Spanish Republic and the violence conflict of the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939); in later years, it would serve as accommodation for distinguished guests, including visiting Catholic Cardinals, Prince Constantine of Greece, and U.S. President Richard Nixon.
The palace was remodeled between 1965 and 1970 under the direction of Catalan architects Joaquim Ros de Ramis, Ignasi Serra Godayin and Antoni Lozoya, who added two new wings to the formerly rectangular building. A corridor—formerly the building’s exit—now connects the older, original part of the palace with the newer additions.
During the renovations, several paintings by contemporary Catalan artists were added to the palace’s official collection by Barcelona Mayor Josep Maria de Porcioles i Colomer, including works by Santiago Rusiñol, Ramón Casas, Ramon Martí Alsina, and others. Even the Palauet’s official office where the visitor’s log is kept was remodeled to be fit for a king, so to speak: all the furniture is also from the furniture collection of wealthy industrialist Lluís Plandiura i Po, and is notable for its detailed marquetry.
For you art and architecture nerds, marquetry is different from inlay, as inlay involves carving out material in order to create a space for another, decorative material such as mother-of-pearl, ivory, or a contrasting piece of wood; marquetry is the process of adhering many thin pieces of wood together to create elaborate designs. The aesthetically pleasing technique was popular during the baroque and rococo era, and experienced a resurgence with the Modernists.
The renovated building was crowned by a spectacular dome painted by Salvador Dalí, which references both local and international cultural happenings, from the sardana to the 1969 moon landing. The new building was officially inaugurated by the dictator Francisco Franco in June of 1970.
Meanwhile, the nearby Palacio de las Misiones and Palacio d’Art Moderno, also built for the 1929 Exposition, were demolished, which allowed for the expansion of the gardens. They were named in honor of Joan Maragall i Gorina: a prolific poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading literary figures of the Catalan Modernist movement. Before his death in 1911; he became a living legend, known for his direct way of expressing himself in his writings.
The gardens’ expansion project was overseen by the chief architect of Barcelona's Municipal Department of Parks and Gardens, Joaquim Maria Casamor: just like the original a half-century ago, his expanded design was inspired by the French style of urban landscaping. It was organized into three zones, with the “zone” in front of the palace's main façade decorated with flowerbeds in the center and a tranquil pond at each end. Opposite the palace is a pavilion sheltering the marble sculpture Susanna in the Bath by French sculptor Théophile-Eugène-Victor Barrau.
The second zone runs along the sides of the palace; this is the area that encompassed the original gardens when they and the palace were first built in 1929. It contains two fountains, as well as one of the oldest statues on the grounds: Reclining Woman by Enric Monjo.
The third and final zone at the north of the grounds is the home of the Santa Madrona chapel—honoring a 600-year-old saint who has been largely eclipsed by the city’s patrons, Eulàlia and La Virgen de la Mercè, but still remains important to the inhabitants of El Poble-sec—and faces the MNAC museum (the National Palace). This zone features a dramatic courtyard surrounded by cypress trees and decorated with an Ionic colonnade, surrounding the famous bronze sculpture Serena by Pilar Francesch, which stands at the entrance of a small amphitheater.
Mark Your Calendar if You Plan to Visit
The gardens and palace are located at Avenida del Estadi, 69 in the neighborhood of El Poble-sec, in the Sants-Montjuïc District; this is the only door to the gardens that are open to the public on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 10:00 to 15:00. All other access points have been permanently closed. Unfortunately, sometimes even that door is closed to the public: you can’t just visit this magical spot whenever you like, as the gardens are closed when there are official events, or institutional visits to the Palauet Albeniz.
As for the palace itself, it opens for free just one weekend a year for the city's annual La Mercé celebrations in late September, and it is closed to the public for the rest of the year. So if you wish to tour the splendid interior and see the spectacular collection of art and period furniture in Palauet Albeniz, it’s your one chance to take it all in.