Sagrada Família

Sagrada Família, Roman Catholic minor basilica in Barcelona, Spain, designed by Antoni Gaudí. Begun in 1882 and still unfinished in the first quarter of the 21st century, the Sagrada Família, notable for its tactile organic form, is one of Barcelona’s most famous landmarks. It is an unexpected sight in its urban setting, with its bold flying buttresses and twisted towers looming over the city.

The project, originally envisioned by Francisco de Paula del Villar, was funded by donations to encourage Christianity in Barcelona, which was becoming increasingly secular. In 1883 Gaudí took over as chief architect, and the project would occupy him throughout the rest of his career. In his drawings and models for the church, Gaudí equilibrated the original Neo-Gothic design into a structure designed to stand on its own without internal bracing or external buttressing. The result, modified beyond recognition, was a complexly symbolic forest of helicoidal piers, hyperboloid vaults and sidewalls, and a hyperbolic paraboloid roof. It was to be Gaudí’s Expressionist vision of a 20th-century cathedral, where he would use visual symbolism to express the many mysteries of the Christian faith. He became increasingly pious while working on the church; after 1910 he abandoned virtually all other work, and he eventually secluded himself on its site and resided in its workshop.

In addition to being devoted to Christianity, Gaudí was an important participant in the Renaixensa, an artistic revival of the arts and crafts combined with a political revival in the form of fervent anti-Castilian “Catalanism.” Both revivals sought to reinvigorate the way of life in Catalonia that had long been suppressed by the Castilian-dominated and Madrid-centred government in Spain, and the Sagrada Família became the religious symbol of the Renaixensa in Barcelona.

Gaudí’s design and models, most of which were destroyed during the Spanish Civil War, show an enormous form capable of accommodating some 13,000 people. Built on a basic basilica plan, the Latin cross is surrounded on three sides by porticoes. To the east stands the Nativity facade with scenes celebrating Jesus’ birth; on the west is the Passion facade, depicting Jesus’ Crucifixion; and the main entrance boasts the Glory facade, showing how humans can celebrate the divine glory. Overhead, 18 huge spindle-shaped towers rise to the heavens, each symbolizing different biblical figures: the 12 Apostles, the four evangelists, the Virgin Mary, and Jesus (represented by what will eventually be the tallest, central tower). Each of the three facades is flanked by four bell towers representing the Apostles; the traitor Judas and the evangelists St. John and St. Matthew are replaced by St. Barnabas, St. Matthias, and St. Paul. The six central towers, representing Jesus and Mary surrounded by the four evangelists, serve as lanterns for the main nave and let light in from above.

When Gaudí died in 1926, only the Nativity facade, one bell tower, the apse, and the crypt were finished; his disciple Domènec Sugranyes subsequently took over the project. Gaudí, whose tomb is beneath the cathedral, knew he would not live to see the completion of his vision, believing it would take 200 years—but, as he said, “The patron of this project is not in a hurry.” The works of Gaudí, including the Nativity facade and the crypt of the Sagrada Família, were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984. In 2010 the uncompleted church was consecrated for religious worship and designated as a minor basilica by Pope Benedict XVI.

Work on the project has continued since Gaudí’s death. The remaining three bell towers of the Nativity facade were completed in 1930. The Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s interrupted construction, and the subsequent loss of most of Gaudí’s designs and models greatly hampered efforts to continue. The present design, parts of which have been met with criticism, is based on surviving and reconstructed materials and a number of modern adaptations. In 1954 the foundation was laid for the Passion facade, the four bell towers of which were completed in 1976. The central nave vaulting was completed in 2000 and finally covered in 2010. Construction was halted in early 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and was resumed in October of that year. The tower of the Virgin Mary, located above the apse of the church and rising to a height of 138 metres (453 feet), was inaugurated in December 2021. It is topped with a 12-pointed star that is illuminated at night. In 2022 the towers representing the evangelists St. Mark and St. Luke were completed; they measure 135 metres (443 feet) tall. The remaining towers and most of the church’s structure were planned to be completed by 2026, the centennial of Gaudí’s death. It is expected to be the tallest church building in the world.