Because of the great intellectual work that Gaudí was doing towards the beginning of 1910 and after seeing that the critics were not appreciating his architecture, Gaudí entered a nervious depression which obligated him to spend some time away from his cotidian work.

His friend, Torras I Bages, informed jesuit father Ignasi Casanovas of the state in which the architect was. Casanovas was pleased to recommend that he spend some time resting in the city of Vic - about 60 km away from Barcelona.

Casanovas sought lodging for Gaudí in the house of the widdow of Rocafiguera, Señora Concepció Vila, thinking that the presence of the famous architect would liven up the life of her small palace on Calle Casadó. This did not happen due to the discretion that characterized the Catalan architect.

During his stay in Vic, Gaudí spend a good amount of time with pharmacist Joaquim Vilaplana, who described to César Martinell the discussions he had with the architect about art and architecture.

Gaudí was in Vic for three weeks during the month of May, 1910. In the mornings, he would go to mass and take the holy communion before eating his tiny breakfast. After that, he would visit the Diocesan Museum and carry on conversations with its curator, reverend Josep Gudiol. It is also known that he visited his friend, Bishop Doctor Torras I Bages.

Although his stay in Vic was meant to be total rest, Gaudí did not neglect to design at least one architectural element, hence leaving his mark on the capital of the region of Osona. In that time, the centennial of the birth of Catalan philosopher Jaume Balmes was to be celebrated, and somehow the proposal to design commemorative lamp-posts landed in Gaudí's hands. He got straight to work and roughly sketched plans for two carved basalt lamp-posts with forged iron arms, from which would hang two lamps inscribed with the anniversary dates - "1810-1910". On the top, he placed the typical four-armed Gaudinian cross, realized also in forged iron, twisted like on the balconies of Casa Milá in Barcelona.

The execution of the project was to be lead by architect Canaleta, structurally, with help from Jujol on the polichrome, but the idea of the project very clearly corresponds to Gaudí, because, just as César Martinell describes in his book, during that same time, basalt was being used in the construction of the Crypt of the Güell Colony, and they were just about to finish the the balconies of Casa Milá, whose influences are easily detected in the lamp-posts of Vic.

The streetlights were inaugurated on the 7th of September, 1910, but today, we only have a few remaining photographs that remind us of what they were like when standing - in 1924, it was decided that they would be torn down.