Райнер Цербст изучал современные языки в Тюбингенском университете и в Уэльсе с 1969 по 1975 год. С 1976 по 1982 год он работал научным сотрудником на кафедре английского языка в Тюбингенском университете. После получения докторской степени в 1982 году Цербст был активным критиком в области искусства, литературы и театра.
Freedom of form with the “Dante of architecture”. The life of Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926) was full of complexity and contradictions. As a young man he joined the Catalonian nationalist movement and was critical of the church, toward the end of his life he devoted himself completely to the construction of one single spectacular church, La Sagrada Familia. In his youth, he courted a glamorous social life and the demeanor of a dandy. By the time of his death in a tram accident on the streets of Barcelona his clothes were so shabby passersby assumed he was a beggar. Gaudi&
apos;
s incomparable architecture channels much of this multifaceted intricacy. From the shimmering textures and skeletal forms of Casa Batllo to the Hispano-Arabic matrix of Casa Vicens, his work merged the influences of Orientalism, natural forms, new materials, and religious faith into a unique Modernista aesthetic. Today, his unique aesthetic enjoys global popularity and acclaim. His magnum opus, the Sagrada Familia, is the most-visited monument in Spain, and...