The Francisco Godia Foundation's new headquarters fill the ground floor and first floor of a prominent mansion in the Eixample neighbourhood in Barcelona. It is called Casa Garriga Nogués and was built by the architect Enric Sagnier at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century for the banker Rupert Garriga Miranda.

The building's address is Carrer Diputació, 250. It is in a central location: between Rambla de Catalunya and Balmes. In this stretch of the Eixample one can find some of the most outstanding examples of architectural Modernism. The Garriga Nogués family lived on the first floor until the Spanish Civil War broke out. It later housed a religious school and from 1986 was owned by Fundació Enciclopèdia Catalana (Catalan Encyclopaedia Foundation), which carried out the initial refurbishment.

The work performed to adapt the building to its current use by the Francisco Godia Foundation, converting it into a modern exhibition area covering more than 2,700 m², was directed by the architect Jordi Garcés, who had previously proven his skill in similar tasks - in particular the remodelling of the Picasso Museum in Barcelona.

The first floor is given prominence by the balcony hanging over the entrance, supported by four large corbels sculpted by Eusebi Arnau. The ground floor, which is now used as a hall for temporary exhibitions, has a shed structure supported by tall cast iron columns that extends back into the middle of the block. Visitors reach the first floor by climbing the grand staircase. The interior of the first floor, which houses the Francisco Godia Foundation's permanent collection, has been totally restructured in an effort to return it to its original condition. The line of rooms ends in a landscape window crafted by A. Rigalt y C. The outstanding feature of the rear of the home is the large dining hall and its green marble columns and gilt bronze capitals.

A large anthological exhibition of the Francisco Godia Foundation collection, the most complete to date, is on display to start off this new era: the most important works of medieval art, Baroque painting, brilliant and tragic Modernism, the refinement of ceramics, and 19th, 20th and 21st century art from Pablo Picasso to Piero Manzoni and Karel Appel to Cristina Iglesias.

Casa Garriga Nogués is a little gem in Barcelona's urban landscape just waiting to be rediscovered by the inhabitants of Barcelona and all those who visit the city.

Façade of Casa Garriga Nogués	Main entrance of the Francisco Godia Foundation	Detail on the main marble staircase and the foundation’s lobby