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Very Interesting CNN Article About La Sagrada Familia

Posted by (Washington DC) on

This article goes into a good amount of detail about the challenges of completing Gaudi's design--especially due to its technical complexity and loss of much of the architect's documentation and models during the Civil War. I hadn't previously heard about the role played by a then-young New Zealander who visited the cathedral [sorry--basilica] in 1979 and has subsequently been instrumental in harnessing the power of computers to super-charge the construction process via such techniques as robotic stone carving.

The article notes that COVID-19-related issues will delay completion of the basilica past the 2026 deadline established not too long ago.

https://www.cnn.com/style/article/sagrada-familia-history-robots-test-of-time/index.html

Posted by
7160 posts

Good article. I first visited the Sagrada Familia in the fall of 1980. My last visit to it was in 2006.

Posted by
10344 posts

Interesting article, acraven. We last saw La Sagrada in spring 2019. Magnificent, of course.
We wanted to take the elevator up to the upper facade and walk down, but not being as young as we used to be the security personnel politely pulled us out of the line and asked us to demonstrate sufficient dexterity to safely make the big climb down the winding stairs, we had to jump up and down several times. Passed the test but took the stair down-climb carefully.
Acraven, thanks for the update on how covid issues are impacting the opening date.

Posted by
3961 posts

Thanks acraven. Fascinating article. We visited in 2016 and did take the elevator to the upper facade. The stairs coming down was slow especially when we encountered 2 women clinging to the wall. It was a challenge getting by them. Would we do it again? Absolutely!

Posted by
1560 posts

We have been blessed to visit Sagrada for a number of decades and note the tremendous pace of progress on the structure and the impact upon the surrounding neighborhood. Unfortunately the immediate streetscape now has more in common with a strip shopping center anchored by chain fast food restaurants then being a voice of resonating the values of being a UNESCO heritage site. Greed should not be the landlord allowed within this area.

Posted by
4262 posts

This reminds me of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine they have been building in NYC. Construction began in 1892. They believe it will take many centuries to complete since they use their money for community outreach, it is complete enough to have services, etc. They have Choral Evensong on Saturdays at 4:00. It is no where as large as La Sagrada Familia, but is very impressive.

Posted by
8556 posts

We were lucky and visited Sagrada familia decades ago -- we spent a whole day just roaming around the towers something that is not possible today with the very restricted tours available. It was just a stunning thing. ONe thing that shocked me in the article was that because Gaudi was not well dressed and not carrying ID when he was hit by a street car and injured, he was basically treated as a pauper and allowed to die without proper care. No one knew who he was.

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