antoni gaudí’s furniture reissued in new collection by BD barcelona

a collection to mark 100 years since gaudí’s passing

To mark the centenary of Antoni Gaudí’s death in 1926, the design marketplace Monde Singulier presents an exclusive Parisian showcase of furniture reissued in collaboration with BD Barcelona, the official editor of Gaudí’s designs, at its space on Rue Danielle Casanova in the 2nd arrondissement.

The exhibition, which ran from February 19th to 21st, brought a focused selection of oak furniture originally conceived for Casa Calvet and Casa Batlló into a contemporary gallery setting in central Paris. The presentation forms part of BD Barcelona’s year-long program dedicated to the Gaudí Centenary, extending a series of international initiatives throughout 2026.

Antoni Gaudí, Calvet Chair, archival image courtesy BD Barcelona

Furniture as an Extension of Architecture

The Gaudí-designed chairs and benches carry a palpable density, seen at last through their reissuing by BD Barcelona. Their varnished surfaces absorb and reflect light with a muted sheen which reveals the grain’s direction and the subtle transitions between convex and concave planes. Wooden legs twist with a graceful torsion, and backrests follow the curvature of the spine. The approach reflects a central idea in Antoni Gaudí’s work marked by furniture conceived as a direct continuation of architecture.

‘Gaudí did not design furniture as objects, but as living extensions of architecture and the body,‘ notes BD Barcelona’s Max D’Huart. ‘For the centenary, our responsibility is not only to preserve these works, but to share the craftsmanship and human knowledge that continue to bring them to life. Through collaborations such as Monde Singulier, we aim to make that living legacy visible.’

BD Barcelona, Calvet Armchair, Antoni Gaudí | image © Jara Varela

historic design reissued through the lens of BD barcelona

BD Barcelona has preserved and re-edited Gaudí’s furniture since 1975, and has entrusted production to a lineage of master artisans who maintain the techniques and material standards associated with the originals. Each piece is handcrafted in solid oak, numbered, signed, and certified by the Real Cátedra Gaudí as an exact reproduction.

The showcase foregrounds this transmission of knowledge. Elements of the production process are highlighted during the presentation, emphasizing that Gaudí’s philosophy is embedded in gestures and methods as much as in the finished form. The hand that shapes the wood remains integral to the piece’s identity, and links present-day craftsmanship to late nineteenth-century experimentation.

BD Barcelona, Antoni Gaudí, collection | image courtesy BD Barcelona

Antoni Gaudí, Calvet Chair, original sketches, archival image courtesy BD Barcelona

functional sculptures by a design icon

Viewed in isolation, a Casa Calvet chair reads almost as a carved study of movement. The backrest dips and rises in a continuous contour, while the arms curve outward in a gesture that anticipates the forearm’s placement. The seat’s surface appears scooped from a single block, its edges softened through repeated sanding and varnishing.

All together, the furniture reveals a compositional intelligence that mirrors Gaudí’s interiors. Historic images of Casa Batlló and Casa Calvet show ensembles of chairs arranged in relation to windows, brick walls, and decorative fittings. The Paris installation echoes that dialogue between architecture and object to frame the pieces within a spatial narrative rather than isolating them as collectibles.

BD Barcelona, Batlló Bench, Antoni Gaudí | image © Salva Lopez