Nouveau

The son of a coppersmith, Antonio Gaudi was born in Reus, Spain in 1852. He studied at the Escola Superior d'Arquitectura in Barcelona and designed his first major commission for the Casa Vincens in Barcelona using a Gothic Revival style that set a precedent for his future work. Over the course of his career, Gaudi developed a sensuous, curving, almost surreal design style which established him as the innovative leader of the Spanish Art Nouveau movement.

Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh, whose work is well-known in its own right not only developed a unique style of gesso work, but was also an accomplished and highly imaginative artist in the feild of repousse metal work.

With little regard for formal order, he juxtaposed unrelated systems and altered established visual order. Gaudi's characteristically warped form of Gothic architecture drew admiration from other avant-garde artists. Although categorized with the Art Nouveau, Gaudi created an entirely original style. He died in Barcelona in 1926.

Mackintosh married Margaret in the previous year her younger sister Frances had married J Herbert draughtsman practice of John Honetman. The four, as they were close knit socially and artisticlly produced work that the pupluc criticised.