The work of Antoni Gaudí is the most important example of modernista architecture, the artistic movement that extended from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century. Gaudí, the brilliant architect and artist, made a very personal interpretation of Modernisme, with architectural, decorative and spatial techniques full of creative freedom and innovation.

Park Güell, the Palau Güell and the Casa Milà were declared a World Heritage Site in 1984. Sixteen years later, five more works were included which make up a collection that is representative of the essence and the evolution of the work of Antoni Gaudí. Thus, the works declared a World Heritage Site are: the Park and the Palau Güell, Casa Milà, Casa Vicenç, the Façade of the Nativity and the Crypt of the Sagrada Familia, Casa Batlló and the crypt of the Colònia Güell.

Gaudí was a complete artist, who conceived architecture as a complete work of art, in which it is not just buildings that are important but also all the interior details. Heir to a certain way of thinking from figures such as Ruskin, Morris or Viollet-le-Duc, Gaudí in turn became an inspiration for future artists such as Le Corbusier and Dalí.

The work of Antoni Gaudí is concentrated fundamentally in Catalonia, although he worked also in other places such as Comillas (Cantabria), Astorga and León (Castilla y León) and Palma de Mallorca.

His creations are framed within the context of Modernisme and the Renaixença, cultural movements that took place within the modernity and progress of the period, but which also included strong feelings towards tradition and identity.