Academic year 1869-1870: Passion for the Architecture

Anton Gaudí decided to study Architecture. Perhaps influenced him the architectural beauty of the environment where he lived, or the contemplation of the promising Eixample, which surely would need many professionals of this studies. In any case, it was the "serious" career where he could better dedicate himself to the art. The education superior of the Architecture would not start in Barcelona even after two years, 1871, at the Free School, which would transform in 1875 into the Superior School of Architecture, initially placed in the second floor of the magnificent Gothic building of the Llotja. The academic itinerary, once the High School finished, started in the Faculty of Sciences with five subjects free of selective character and followed, already in the School of Architecture, with two examinations of admission (“Dibujo hasta copiar a la aguada detalles de edificios de todos géneros” and “Dibujo de figura”), a preparatory course and the four courses of the career said career. Anton was 17 years old. On the 11th October of 1869, he registered himself in two subjects of the Faculty of Sciences: "Complementos de Álgebra, Geometría y Trigonometría rectilínea y esférica and “Geometría analítica de dos y tres dimensiones”. He acted as surety Patrici Barnusell, who had the address in the same shop of the square of Montcada, no. 12; and he registered himself out of deadline alleging that, for the proclamation of the Republic in Reus, he had not been able to travel before to Barcelona. In spite of his desire to pay attention in the classes, he did not achieve not to get distracted in the lessons of Geometry, which unchained the fermentation of the yeasts of his work future. An inclination stronger than his will dragged him in the meditation of the Mechanics of the buildings, managing to discern the forms of equilibrium that later he will rehearse and he will carry out in a brilliant way. In the ordinary exams of June of 1870 he approved of both subjects. During the summer of 1870, the brothers Gaudí came back in Reus and Riudoms. Anton was met with his friends of the school of Piarists Eduard Toda and Josep Ribera. In July, they spent a time in the village of residence of this last one, l'Espluga de Francolí, where they visited the ruins of the monastery of Saint Mary of Poblet. The three friends plotted a project of restoration. The old brother, Francesc, by his hand, published an article in "El Eco del Centro de Lectura", the 21 August of 1870. It is titled "Las abejas" and it explains in informative prose the life of these insects and the products that the farmers can obtain from it: wax and honey.

Josep Maria Tarragona, April 7, 2007
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