El Capricho facts for kids
{{Infobox building | image = El Capricho Gaudí 02.jpg | location = Comillas (Cantabria), Spain | architect = Antoni Gaudí | embedded =
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El Capricho is a super cool villa, or fancy house, located in a town called Comillas in Cantabria, Spain. It was designed by the famous architect Antoni Gaudí. This amazing building was built between 1883 and 1885. It was meant to be a summer home for a rich person named Máximo Díaz de Quijano. Sadly, he passed away a year before the house was even finished!
Gaudí didn't design many buildings outside of Catalonia, which is a region in Spain. But he did work on other projects in Comillas. For example, he helped out Joan Martorell with another summer house nearby called the Palacio de Sobrellano.
El Capricho shows off Gaudí's early style, which is sometimes called his "orientalist period." It's like he was inspired by designs from places like the Middle East. This building also gives us a peek into the ideas behind Modernisme. This was a special art and architecture style that came before Art Nouveau in Europe. The tower of El Capricho even looks a bit like a minaret, which is a tall tower found on mosques. After Máximo Díaz de Quijano died, the building became a summer house for powerful and wealthy people.
Sadly, the building started to fall apart after the Spanish Civil War. Even though it was declared a National Monument in 1969, it stayed in bad shape for a while. In 1977, the last person from the original family sold the property. It was then fixed up and turned into a restaurant in 1988. Finally, in 2009, El Capricho became a museum, so everyone can visit and enjoy it!
Contents
| Official name: Villa El Capricho | |
| Type: | Non-movable |
|---|---|
| Criteria: | Monument |
| Designated: | 24 July 1969 |
| Reference #: | RI-51-0003828 |
Discovering El Capricho's Design
El Capricho is one of the many amazing buildings created by the talented architect Antoni Gaudí. In this project, Gaudí showed off his incredible skills. He combined his knowledge of solving design problems with different architectural styles. The result is a building that tells a story and shows off his unique way of building.
The Unique Tower
The tower of El Capricho is covered with beautiful ceramic tiles. These tiles switch between bright yellow sunflowers and soft green leaves. The very top of the tower has an arabesque design, which is a fancy, flowing pattern. At the bottom of the tower, you'll see four classical columns. These strong, white columns help hold up the heavy tower. They also create a cool contrast with the red bricks and colorful tiles on the rest of the building.
Above the columns, there's a balcony. From here, people can look out at the landscape from a high spot. They can also get a closer look at the detailed tiles on the tower. A steel spiral staircase inside takes you even higher. From the top, you get a fantastic view of Comillas!
Exploring the House
The house itself has three floors. You can tell them apart by the materials used on the outside. The basement was built with large stone bricks. The main floor uses smaller red bricks. The top floor, or attic area, is easy to spot with its beautifully sloped roof and ceramic tiles. The house isn't huge, but it has many different rooms. These rooms were designed to fit all the needs of the owner.
The house also has many large windows. This lets in lots of natural light, making the inside bright and airy. Interestingly, Gaudí was inspired by Gothic architecture. He used pointed arches to frame the windows of the house. This is just another example of how Gaudí mixed different cultures and building styles into his work.
El Capricho was built on the edge of Comillas, in the middle of the countryside. This was so its owner could have a quiet getaway. It was a perfect escape from the busy city life.
See also
In Spanish: El Capricho (Gaudí) para niños
