Vila de Gràcia: village soul, universal feature
The section where we travel around Barcelona and Sant Cugat is back. After writing about Horta we go into 'Gràcia' one of the ten Barcelona big subdivisions. The neighborhood that today will be our goal is 'Vila de Gracia'.
The independent Gracia (1626-1897): from dispersed settlement to the aggregation inside Barcelona.
'Vila de Gracia' was born on XVII century. The place that will host the quarter was chosen by Romans in order to build a road which then connects Castrum Octavianum, currently is, Sant Cugat, with Barcino, nowadays is Barcelona.
Gracia was born in 1626 to host the Convent of the Virgin Mary of Grace (commonly known as the "Josepets"). In the eighteenth century it was a scattered settlement with only twenty houses surrounded by fields, therefore, it had the subsistence assured.
In 1821, almost two centuries later, the population exceeded 1,000 people. That is why it managed, for the first time, to become a municipality until 1823 (end of the Liberal Triennium) this status would be recovered in 1850. Surprisingly enough, in the same decade would lay the facts which would end the municipal independence. Three factors were decisive in triggering this process:
a) In 1854 Barcelona knocked down its walls that restricted the space, while widen the city horizons.
b) Independent Gràcia changes its urban planning as a result the municipality (much larger than the current Vila de Gràcia district) went from being mostly agricultural land to become a urban land. Therefore, houses, squares, parks, etc. could be built. In this way the population of the district speeds up from 13,000 inhabitants in 1850 to 62,000 in 1897.
c) In the neighborhood there were no decent services to absorb such a dizzying increase in population. Instead, Gràcia had the space that Barcelona's urban planners coveted.
Finally, in 1897 Gràcia was added to Barcelona.
Vila de Gràcia twentieth and twenty-first century: from Barcelona's cultural reference point to a global tourist scene
In the 20th century, the Vila de Gràcia -and Gràcia subdivision in general- left its mark on the Barcelona imaginary. Culture shows this reality like no other area does, two obvious examples:
- The Catalan Rumba linked to the gypsy community.
- The iconic novel by one of the best Catalan writers Mercè Rodoreda entitled "Plaça del diamant". Like the rest of the city, the 1992 Olympic Games are the real end of the tweentieth century. Specifically for the Vila de Gracia represented to add to its village aspect the fact of being a neighborhood: tourist, bohemian and cosmopolitan.
Vila de Gràcia monuments
Have you ever thought what a neighborhood would be like without monuments or remarkable places? At best, a forgettable zone and at worst ugly or sad one.
When a city manages to give personality and charm to an urban space it is because its architects, urban planners and artists work together. In this sense, a Vila de Gràcia singularity is its abundant pedestrianization that makes it a friendly space and, as we will see, gives a prominent weight to the squares.
The Vila de Gracia has its monuments and emblematic spaces:
1. 'Casa Vicens': a beautiful modernist building of those which show that Modernism is not only a claim, it also has its aesthetic materialization that gives a unique beauty to many of the monuments of this style.
2. 'Vila de Gracia square': it is in the heart of the neighborhood with the octagonal clock tower in the center. This 19th century monument was a work by Antoni Rovira y Trias and is crowned by the Campana de Gracia.
3. 'Virreina square': urbanized in 1878 with a lot of space, a rich trees plantation and the church of 'Sant Joan' built by Josep Artigas that with its height stands out above the original low houses and finishes off the space giving it depth. It is also partially pedestrianized, this urbanistic option encourages the neighborhood spirit.
4. 'Diamant square': it is a space where the pavement in rectangles is comfortable and there is abundant urban furniture and just enough bars to socialize. This space and others -such as the ruby or topaz square- pay homage to jewelry, the reason being that they were acquired by the alderman Josep Rossell, who was a jeweler.
5. 'The reading to Pompeu Fabra': it is an artistic composition located in Salvador Espriu gardens of (popularly known as the 'jardinets de Gràcia') it is the relief of a woman reading dressed in a traditional way clothes. It was reworked in 1993 -for the 125th anniversary of the birth of the Catalan grammar unifier Pompeu Fabra- by Anna Ribas, while the original work was made by Josep Clarà.
We hope that in your next visit to Barcelona you'll be enthusiastic about find out Gracia .