Article updated on August 22, 2026
Text: Claire Lessiau
Photographs: Claire Lessiau & Marcella van Alphen

Although it stands only a stone’s throw from La Sagrada Família, the Sant Pau Art Nouveau site remains far less visited than Barcelona’s best-known Modernist landmarks. Built in the early 20th century, this extraordinary hospital complex is one of the world’s finest examples of Catalan Modernisme, and a remarkably innovative building.

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An Outdated 500-year-old Hospital

The Hospital de la Santa Creu (the hospital of the Holy Cross), founded in 1401 and operating for almost five centuries in Barcelona’s medieval district, was outdated and could no longer meet the city’s needs. A new hospital was urgently required.

Born and raised in Barcelona but living in Paris, where he got inspired by Lariboisière Hospital, the banker Paul Gil i Serra (1816–1896) devoted much of his fortune to building a modern hospital in his hometown. Construction would take almost 30 years. Gil financed the first phase, but when the funds ran out in 1912—10 years after work began and with barely a quarter of the original plans completed—other families and anonymous donors stepped in.

The Sant Pau Project

Renowned Modernist architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner (1849–1923), a prominent figure in the Catalan nationalist movement and one of Gaudí’s teachers, was entrusted with the project.

Construction began in 1902 on open land beyond the Eixample, at the edge of the expanding city. After the devastating cholera epidemics of the 19th century, locating the hospital away from the crowded city center, with plenty of fresh air and open space, was a logical choice.

Beyond the colorful and grand architecture that makes Sant Pau resemble an Art Nouveau palace, the complex embodied a remarkably advanced approach to health care. It placed a strong emphasis on sanitation, hygiene, and patients’ physical and emotional comfort in order to promote and speed up recovery.

When Architecture Supports Healing

The hospital’s pavilions were surrounded by landscaped gardens and connected by nearly one kilometer (0.6 miles) of underground tunnels. Each building was dedicated to a different medical specialty. Infection control was taken seriously, and patients were assigned to pavilions according to their conditions. Every pavilion was self-contained, with its own dayroom, nurses’ station, bathrooms, and water tower.

Ceramic tiles covered the floors and walls, making the surfaces easy to clean and disinfect. Corners were rounded to prevent dirt and bacteria from accumulating. Rather than following the urban grid of the Eixample neighborhood, most pavilions faced south to maximize natural light, including sunlight entering through the skylights. Only operating rooms faced north to improve the comfort of the medical staff with cooler temperature and a more even light. Color therapy was also implemented and played a therapeutic role, with soothing blue-green tones used throughout the halls. Gardens filled with medicinal plants, flowers, and orange trees surrounded the pavilions, offering patients peaceful places in which to rest and recover.

With its natural light, natural ventilation, and exquisite decor, Sant Pau was unlike any other hospital in the world. It showcased Barcelona as an ambitious, modern city. As such, the Administration Pavilion was built using costly materials such as red marble and Roman-style mosaics, evoking Catalonia’s prestigious past. Throughout the complex, decorative symbols celebrated charity, religious faith, and Catalan identity.

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Yet after a decade of construction and with only 12 pavilions completed, Pau Gil’s money ran out. Additional pavilions were later built more quickly and economically, and the hospital remained in use until 2009. Of the 48 pavilions originally planned, only 27 were completed, and just slightly more than half of them in the original Art Nouveau style.

Built as a hospital for the poor, Sant Pau must have seemed extraordinary to modest families arriving from the dark, damp homes of Barcelona’s medieval center: open, colorful, bright, and surrounded by gardens. It pioneered the idea that patients’ surroundings matter, and that beauty, light, and tranquility can support the healing process. Today, Sant Pau is both an architectural masterpiece and an essential Art Nouveau landmark in Barcelona.

Travel tips:

• For tours and more details, check out the website of Sant Pau Recinte Modernista.
• This article is now featured on GPSmyCity. To download this article for offline reading or travel directions to the attractions highlighted in this article, go to Walking Tours and Articles in (Barcelona) on GPSmyCity. 
• Check out this interactive map for the specific details to help you plan your trip and more articles (zoom out) about the area!
  

 

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