Valencia Art Nouveau Architecture: Self-Guided Walk, Valencia, Spain

While Barcelona is known for its astonishing, world-famous Gaudi buildings, the Art Nouveau architecture in Valencia isn’t quite as well-known.

Walking around the streets of Valencia, I couldn’t stop looking up. There were so many gorgeous buildings to spot, especially in the decorated Art Nouveau style, or by its local name: Modernismo.

I wanted to take a guided architecture tour in Valencia focusing on Modernismo, but there wasn’t one available in English while I was there.

So I decided to learn about it myself and created a self-guided walk highlighting some of the most beautiful examples of the Art Nouveau or Modernismo architecture style I found around Valencia.

Art Nouveau emerged in Europe at the turn of the 20th century and spread across the continent as well as to North America.

It’s a highly aesthetic style, characterised by curving lines, motifs from nature, and rich ornamentation.

In many cities in Europe, such as Paris, Riga, Brussels, Aveiro, and Poznan, you can find some truly beautiful and well-preserved examples of Art Nouveau architecture.

The name Modernismo is a bit confusing since the name Modern or Modernist architecture is used to describe a much later architectural style that’s quite different from Art Nouveau: minimalist, functionalist, and with fewer decorations if at all. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).