Barcelona Pavilion

The Barcelona Pavilion, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, was the German Pavilion for the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona, Spain. This building was used for the official opening of the German section of the exhibition . It was an important building in the history of modern architecture, known for its simple form and extravagant materials, such as marble and travertine. Several critics, historians and modernists have declared it "th... more

The Barcelona Pavilion, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, was the German Pavilion for the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona, Spain. This building was used for the official opening of the German section of the exhibition . It was an important building in the history of modern architecture, known for its simple form and extravagant materials, such as marble and travertine. Several critics, historians and modernists have declared it "the most beautiful building of the century" . Mies was offered the commission of this building in 1928 after his successful administration of the 1927 Werkbund exhibition in Stuttgart. The German Republic entrusted Mies with the artistic management and erection of not only the Barcelona Pavilion, but for the buildings for all the German sections at the 1929 Universal Exhibition. However, Mies had severe time contraints—he had to design the Barcelona Pavilion in less than a year—and he also was dealing with uncertain economic conditions. In the... less