La Sagrada Familia – June 16, 2015
One of the main attractions and pulls to Barcelona tourism is the immense amount of Gaudi architecture and design in the city. Perhaps the most well known example is La Sagrada Familia, a church dedicated to the Sacred Family. Four years ago, visiting the Catalonian capital with my mother and siblings, we stopped by the immense project, walking around all four facades and reading from our photocopied tour book about the main elements of the massive undertaking. We didn’t dare to go inside, however, due to the snaking line around the block. Luckily, being part of a school group helps to shorten the wait, and this time, four years later, I was able to skip the line and walk straight in the East Facade.
Instead of being led through Gaudi’s final, and still continuing, masterpiece by our dear professor
Judith Urbano, we were greeted by a special guest lecturer, and Gaudi expert Professor Estevez. He taught us about the way Gaudi used nature in an intuitive way to create strong and efficient designs. Hyperboloids (imagine the gradual curve in your bone from joint to joint) and paraboloids (imagine the gaps between your fingers, or the hanging of a chain) are two geometric, mathematical forms that he garnered from the natural world and included in his works. If natural selection and evolution has proven anything, it is that nature “seeks” out the most efficient ways to continue a species progression. Why not use this efficiency in architectural and structural design?
Let’s look at some ways that Gaudi takes natural forms and materials into consideration as he designs:
Here is a photograph I took of the church’s ceiling. The first element we see is the parabolic arches, also known as catenary arches. Gaudi used chain models, weighted with sand bags, to help him visualize these designs. Gravity is the master, not Gaudi. There are many differences between these types of arches and, for example, a midpoint arch (popularized in Roman, Romanesque, and Renaissance architecture). Whereas the “legs” of the latter archways are perfectly vertical, allowing for all the pressure and strength to be applied to the keystone, a catenary arch has tilted “legs,” allowing gravity to apply equal pressure on all aspects of the arch. This efficient way of distributing the weight of towers and spires allowed Gaudi to forgo the necessity of flying buttresses!!!
Though this photograph might not convey the appearance of the entire building, it is the nicest one I have, and I would rather reproduce my own pictures than pull one off of the internet. This building is right next to the church, still inside the gates of the La Sagrada Familia tourist experience. Gaudi built this as a school for the children of those who were working on the church. Because it was a temporary structure, Gaudi wanted to be as efficient as possible with the materials, but this posed possible structural problems. How did he reconcile this dilemma? By placing the bricks in a vertical, rather than horizontal, manner, Gaudi was able to use less of it. This, however, leads to a weak wall. Professor Estevez explained that just as trees and leaves, limited material must be manipulated in order to make it efficient. Instead of flat walls that we are accustomed to, Gaudi curved his vertical brick walls, giving them more strength – imagine carrying a heavy object on a flat piece of paper as compared to a curved one.
Though this picture was taken to show the colorful stained glass window, it also incorporates another very important element in Gaudi’s design – the columns. Most architects use the same material for all of their columns throughout one work. Gaudi, however, picked the materials based on strength, need, and efficiency. The column on view in the foreground of this image is located at the center of the church. When the project is completed, estimated to be in 2026, this column (and three others) will support the two tallest towers – the Christ Tower and the Mary Tower. Because of the immense weight, the columns need to be strong. Gaudi chose porphyry, the strongest known rock, for these central columns. As you walk down the main nave, the columns are constructed by weaker materials – basalt and granite. It was Gaudi’s understanding of these materials that allowed him to efficiently use them in his construction.
Gaudi was not only an architectural genius, but he was also a very spiritual and religious man. For this reason, he used a lot of symbolism in his work. La Sagrada Familia is covered in “hidden” messages to those who don’t know any better, but let me cue you in to some really cool ones!
18 – Number of towers at the completion of the project
12 Apostles, 4 Evangelists, Christ, Mary
12 – Number of pinnacles on the lateral naves
6 fruits representing the spring/summer harvest (East Facade)
6 fruits representing the fall/winter harvest (East Facade)
The 12 virtues of the Holy Spirit
Bread and Grapes – Pinnacles atop the main nave
Bread is the body of Christ
Grapes is the blood of Christ
East Facade – Nativity
The sun rises in the East, representing beginnings/happiness
Turtles – Land and Sea
The bases of the columns that lead you into the East Facade are in the shape of one land turtle, and one sea turtle. Gaudi is saying that God presides over all of the earth.
Lizards – Devils
On the East Facade, Baby Jesus is surrounded by many animals. The furthest from him are two lizards, representing evil.
West Facade – Passion
The sun sets in the West, representing death/endings
Main Entrance/South Facade – Second Coming (not yet completed)
Flanked by a fountain (water) and a torch (fire)
Water and Fire are both manners of cleansing
Water – Baptism
Fire – Confession
There are probably many small symbols that I have forgotten (I am writing all of this from memory without any of my notes), and even more that I didn’t have time to learn about! It was great getting to see this long-term work, one for which Gaudi claimed that “my client is not in a hurry.” To be honest though, me being the quirky person I am, I think my favorite part was the little school house!
