Casa Milà (also known as La Pedrera) is a modernist building in Barcelona and the last private residence designed by architect Antoni Gaudí, built between 1906 and 1912.
The name, La Pedrera or "The stone quarry", is a reference to its unconventional rough appearance because of its undulating stone façade and twisting wrought iron balconies. The building has several structural innovations as a self-supporting stone façade, an underground garage and one spectacular terrace on the roof.
Casa Milà was built in 1906 for Roser Segimón and her husband Pedro Milà y Camps. Roser Segimón was the wealthy widow of Josep Guardiola, a former colonist returned from South America, who has made his fortune growing coffee on his own plantation in Guatemala. Reser’s second husband, Pere Milà was a lawyer, politician and businessman well known for his lifestyle.
6 years after Mila’s death, in 1946, Segimon sold the house to Josep Ballvé i Pellisé. Roser continued to live on the main floor of the building until her death in 1964. La Pedrera was sold again in 1966, but the maintenance costs were too high and the building was left in ruins. Finally, in 1986, Caixa Catalunya bought the building, the restoration works begun a year later. In 1990, the renovated floor opened for public and it is an example of modernism in the Eixample district.
In 1984, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and since 2013 it has been the headquarters of the Fundació Catalunya La Pedrera. The organization manages the visits, exhibitions and other cultural activities at Casa Milà.
For more details, you can visit La Padrera’s site.
TIP: You can acquire a Go Barcelona Pass – an electronic ticket on your mobile phone - that combines the city’s best points of interests. The card includes an audio guide for every attraction, a ticket for the official Barcelona city Hop-on Hop-Off tourist bus, a cruise and entrance for over 30 objectives. You can buy the pass here.