Barcelona’s most
famous landmark
KINDLY described
by Georges Orwell as ‘one of the most hideous buildings in the world’ (and
considered by others t ocontain some of the most sublime architecture in modern
history), Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia is a landmark of Marmite divisiveness. But
like it or loathe it, the basilica is the world’s most famous building site. Conceived
by visionary architect Antoni Gaudi, its sculptures and spires have been slowly
forming over Barcelona’s rooftops for more than 130 years – and will continue
to do so for at least 12 years more, until the builders take off their hard
hats for good.
Fortunately you won’t have to wait that long to get an
impression of the end product. A newly released video gives a 360-degree CGI
rendering of how the structure should look when it’s completed in 2026 (the
centenary of Gaudi’s death and it’s already accrued nearly four million views
online.
The pious architect himself, however, was never bothered by
the length of time the project was taking. When questioned about the delays, he
was said to have simply answered: ‘My client is not in a hurry.’
To watch the video, visit the Sagarada Familia You Tube
shannel (youtube.com/sagradafamiliacat).
Entry to La Sagrada Familia starts at (sagradafamilia.cat).
tickets for the towers and the on-site Gaudi Museum are also available.
Waiting For Gaudi,
La Sagrada Familia didn’t begin its life as Gaudi’s project. One of the oldest
parts of the basilica-the exterior of the apse-follows an earlier design for a
neo-Gothic church, briefly attempted in 1882. Should the building be finished
in 2026, it will have taken 144 years to complete-slow going compared with St
Paul’s (35 years), but quicker than Notre Dame (182) and York Minster (252), and
rapid compared to Cologne (632).
Donkey Work,
Depicting the birth of Chirst, the Nativity Façade was the only façade Gaudi
oversaw construction of before his death in 1926. It has a colourful history:
Gaudi hoisted alive donkey over the manger scene to see that it would look
like, while corpses from a local morgue were used as models for some figures. Keep
an eye out for a sculpted solider with six toes: this is because the model also
had an extra digit.
Number Crunching,
Completed in 1976, with statues added from the 1980s, the Passion Façade depicts
the crucifixion of Christ and symbolically faces west towards the setting sun.
its was controversially sculpted in a very different style to Gaudi’s Nativity Façade,
with gaunt, angular figures. Look out for a cryptogram-a grid of 16 numbers that
looks a bit like a Sudoku puzzle. Tallied up in any direction, the numbers
equal 33 Christ’s age when he was crucified.
Inspired Spires,
The spires of La Sagrada Familia are a representation of different figures from
the Bible-these bell towers stand for the 12 apostles (although only eight have
been completed thus far). Even more are on the way: one large spire will
represent the Virgin Mary, while the highest will symbolize Jesus Christ. When complete,
it will make La Sagrada Familia the tallest church building in the world,
standing 170 metres high.
End of the Line.
Work is under way to construct the Glory Façade-set to be the basilica’s
largest. One obstacle Gaudi hadn’t reckoned on here was a high-speed rail
tunnel-opened a few years ago to connect Barcelona to Madrid, it passes within
two metres of the foundations. Gaudi never had the happiest relationship with
things on two rails. He was killed after being knocked over by a tram in 1926,
