Trip 45

January 15,2024

When we checked into our first hotel on arriving in Barcelona, we could see La Sagrada Familia (the Holy Family) in the distance, and even at that distance, understand the imposing size of the structure. Today we visited La Sagrada and spent about 4 hours there with both the guided tour and exploring on our own.

The history behind its conception and (still to be) completion of the church is a complex one, spanning nearly 141 years so far. Projects of this scope are measured in lifetimes, often with many starts and interruptions (for things like money, wars, changing priorities and visions ) and some, understandably, fall short of their original vision. The traditional gothic church envisioned by its original architect (Francisco de Paula del Villar , who resigned after only a year) is far different than the vision behind La Sagrada as we see it today, when Antoni Gaudí i Cornet took over at the age of 31. Gaudí fundamentally reimagined and redesigned the church, incorporating nature, and it is he who once said “Nothing is invented, for it’s written in nature first.” and “Nothing is art if it does not come from nature.” For Gaudi, nature was the greatest divine creation.

La Sagrada Familia is symbolic of the lifetime of Christ . As you tour the church, nature is everywhere, from plants and animals in the sculpture and the brass doors on one side, to the enormous columns (the “forest) seemingly reaching to the sky, to the stained glass windows that (on one one side) reflect the sunlight of the morning and on the other, the setting sun of the evening. “There are no straight lines or sharp corners in nature. Therefore, buildings must have no straight lines or sharp corners.” The columns’ design resembles a stone forest showcasing powerful tree trunks reaching for the sky, complete with branches and leaves at the top. Gaudi orchestrated every detail here, even selecting the varied types of stone for the pillars to optimize weight distribution. This is true throughout the church, where it seems there are hardly any straight lines and only curves. Gaudi was nicknamed to be God’s architect by his contemporaries, for his epiphany was that man creates with straight lines, while God fills nature with graceful curves, angles, and colors.

Gaudi’s deep personal religious beliefs inspired the design and features of the church, with 18 spires (4 yet to be completed) – one spire for each of the evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) , the 12 disciples, Jesus (172 meters tall when completed), and the Virgin Mary. The pinnacles of the spires, which are the brightly coloured structures at the top, are cubes, pyramids and spheres that refer to the attributes of bishops: the mitre, ring, cross and staff. The material that gives the shapes their rich tones is actually Murano glass. Once completed the spires will make Sagrada Familia the tallest church building in the world. The completion of Jesus’ Sagrada Familia tower will be a culmination of the work of more than 140 years and may finish in 2026 – on the 100th anniversary of the death of Gaudi.

The level of detail and symbolism is overwhelming and unlike other churches, there is no one central tower or element, with the sculptures telling the life story of Jesus. Gaudí wanted the church to be the Bible made in stone- the church was built in a very poor area of Barcelona, where most inhabitants were illiterate, so the visualization of Jesus’ life and messages of love and hope were the way Gaudí wanted to tell the story. The three sides of the church – Nativity (birth of Jesus) , Passion (crucifixion and ascension into heaven). and the Glory (Jesus’ teachings) tell that story.

As an architect and artist, Gaudi would create moulds of real life plants and animals in his workshop, copied from living things at the time, which became sculptures in the church.

Though it’s a bit hard to imagine with the height of the interior, there is actually choir seating above where there is room for up to 1,000 members. (Modern addition-elevators in two corners of the church). There will be four pipe organs (one now).

Although Gaudi tragically died in 1926 in an accident, long before much of the church was completed , he spent 43 years of his life dedicated to every detail of its design and construction. After his death, his work and visions for the church were carried on by his apprentices and other architects in the decades that followed, in spite of the 1936 Spanish Civil War, during which his workshop was assaulted, destroying documents, plans and models.

Today the work to complete the church and its remaining four towers continues, though much has changed in methodology. Where Gaudi would have created plaster moulds of his subjects, now they use 3D printing and computer architectural drawing programs.

For Gaudi, Christ’s teachings and love were universal and those sentiments are engraved in many different languages in one of the enormous brass doors.

Incredible is all anyone can say.