Archinect - News

Sagrada Família to be completed in 2026, officials say

2024-03-25T16:48:00-04:00

The completed construction of the Sagrada Família is now expected for 2026, multiple international outlets are reporting. The announcement made recently by the group responsible for managing its construction ends years of speculation as to the exact opening date for Antoni Gaudí’s monumental affirmation of religious life in his native Spain that began 142 years ago this month in Barcelona.

The new completion date coincides with the centennial anniversary of the architect's death at the age of 73 from injuries he sustained in a tram accident on his way home from the site.

Work will culminate first with the Chapel of the Assumption in 2025 and be followed by a crowning tower of Jesus Christ the next year. This comes after the temple's four canonical towers were debuted in December. A source also told The Guardian that its controversial grand staircase, an element some dispute was not Gaudí’s intention, could be added by 2034.

Related on Archinect: Gaudí's Sagrada Família acquires prop...

Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló overlaid with AI-informed artwork by Sofia Crespo

2024-01-30T11:46:00-05:00

Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló in Barcelona has served as the host for a major projection mapping artwork by Sofia Crespo over the weekend. Titled Structures of Being, the event drew 95,000 visitors across its showing on January 27th and 28th.

Image credit: Claudia Maurino

Created by Crespo with music by Robert M. Thomas, the project is described by organizers as “a spectacular setting that immersed the public in the nature contained inside Casa Batlló as well as in Gaudí's creative universe.” Created with the aid of artificial intelligence and the Barcelona Supercomputer Center, the project used data on the behavior of marine currents.

Image credit: Claudia Maurino

The artwork draws on Crespo’s interest in the boundaries of human perception in addition to her research into Gaudí’s own sources of inspiration. The resulting methodology saw Crespo use artificial neural networks to extract visual patterns from data inspired by the bra...

Sagrada Familia reaches important construction milestone

2023-10-03T18:41:00-04:00

More than 140 years after a Spanish bishop laid the cornerstone of Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia basilica, the famously incomplete church is inching toward the finish line, with five of its six central towers now finally fully built as of last week.

The four completed towers symbolize the Evangelist authors of the Bible’s canonical Gospels. The tallest tower, which represents Christ, will follow in 2026. Some doubts remain as to whether or not the construction timeline can stick to its scheduled completion by the end of that year, which will also see Barcelona’s turn as the UIA World Capital of Architecture.

A small contingent of residents who claim the destruction of Gaudí's papers by Anarchists during the Spanish Civil War constitutes grounds for an injunction remains an impediment. Controversial plans for a monumental grand staircase entrance to the Glory facade are also continuing over concerns of displacement that have marred their construction since the late 1970s.

Scaffolding at the site is expected to be removed soon.

Refik Anadol's Casa Batlló NFT sells for $1.38 million

2022-05-11T11:32:00-04:00

A landmark of the Art Nouveau style is on center stage after Refik Anadol’s NFT of the Casa Batlló sold for $1.38 million at Christe’s 21st Century Evening Sale last night.

Titled Living Architecture: Casa Batlló, the piece was commissioned by the group responsible for managing Gaudí’s converted House of Bones last year and is currently on display in a larger format outside the Christie’s Rockefeller Plaza headquarters until May 13. It was also the lone digital-only lot to sell in the auction house’s marquee New York spring sales events this week.

Previously on Archinect: Refik Anadol unveils ‘first-of-its-kind’ AI artwork NFTs

A spokesperson with the Casa Batlló named Gary Gautier called Anadol a “perfect fellow traveler” and told reporters that his work “resides between art and technology, expands the possibilities of architecture and brings a new outlook beyond space and time.” Gautier also commented that the Turkish-American artist “connects past, present and future, reminding u...

Sagrada Família construction once again draws the ire of locals in Barcelona

2021-12-01T12:08:00-05:00

A gigantic 12-pointed star was installed on Monday on one of the main towers of the basilica of the Sagrada Família, Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece that has been a work in progress since 1882. [...] However, their main anxiety is that the foundation will go ahead with its plan to build an enormous stairway leading up to the basilica’s as-yet-unfinished main entrance which, if fully realised, would entail demolishing three entire city blocks, dislodging about 1,000 families and businesses.

Opponents have described the installation of the star as "aesthetically horrible" while the Archbishop of Barcelona called it "[a] historic moment after a year of darkness and tireless struggle."

The site has lost a considerable amount of money in the past year due to a tourist downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Losses of around 47,000 visitors a day have effectively shut down Barcelona's reviled tourism boom and halted construction on the 19th-century project which was expected to finally come to fruition in 2026 by at least two years, according to The Guardian.

Barcelona has been announced as the UIA's 2026 World Capital of Architecture

2021-07-29T18:53:00-04:00

Barcelona has been named the 2026 World Capital of Architecture by the International Union of Architects (UIA), joining Rio de Janeiro and Copenhagen on a list of cities to receive the UNESCO-backed distinction.

The Catalan capital beat out Beijing for the next edition of the honor and will now host the UIA’s triennial conference and general assembly following the recent anointment of Copenhagen, which will hold the title in 2023.

Barcelona’s winning bid was titled “One today, one tomorrow” and will explore the city’s relationship to sustainability drives and the future of architecture “with the aim of transferring [to] the whole of the society the importance and value of architecture and urbanism,” according to a COAC statement.

The congress is slated to coincide with the long-awaited completion of the Sagrada Familia in time for the 100th anniversary of the tragic death of its architect An...

Gaudí's Casa Vicens is now available to book on Airbnb for $1

2021-06-25T08:30:00-04:00

Have a quick hand? Looking for a European architectural getaway this summer? You might be able to win a chance to stay at Barcelona’s famous Casa Vicens thanks to a newly-announced initiative from Airbnb.

Hyperallergic is reporting that the mansion, which was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2005, will be available for a one-in-a-lifetime overnight stay to lucky visitors once booking opens on July 12.

The 136-year-old Neo-Mudéjar building in the city’s Gràcia district was Gaudi’s first private residence and had been converted into a museum following its purchase by an Andorran bank in March of 2014.

A tile fresco during the house's restoration. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons user Ailina.

Guests can enjoy dinner and a private tour of the restored mansion before retiring to the Casa’s opulent first-floor residence and muqarnas-ceilinged smoking room, where a nightcap will be served courtesy of local Michelin star restaurant Hoffman.

The house is considered to be...

Gaudi's Sagrada Familia acquires proper permits

2019-06-10T12:58:00-04:00

She told reporters that the council had finally managed to "resolve a historical anomaly in the city -- that an emblematic monument like the Sagrada Familia... didn't have a building permit, that it was being constructed illegally," Agence France-Presse reported.

Despite being under construction for 137 years, Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona, Spain has never had proper building permits. That is, until now.

CNN reports that Barcelona's chief urban planner announced last week that the city council had finally awarded the committee responsible for the cathedral's construction with a building license. In exchange for the license, the group agreed to pay 4.6 million euros to fund additional mitigation measures to address the impact the cathedral's 4.5 million annual visitors have on surrounding areas.

Detail shot of the Sagrada Famila's decorative spires, Image courtesy Wikimedia user Poniol60.

According to the committee, Gaudi applied for a building permit from the local authorities back in 1882, but apparently, he never heard back. That did not, however, stop the architect from starting construction that year, a monumental task that has been going strong for over a century and is due to be completed in 2026.

Detail view...

Brutalist Retreats and Gaudi Lawsuits: October 2018 in Review

2018-12-27T09:00:00-05:00

Eclectic is the word I would use to describe Archinect news in October: Bizarre lawsuits, advanced mapping algorithms and meticulous light displays were among the subjects of our most popular posts this month.

↑ Gaudi's Sagrada Familia fined $41 million for lack of building permit

Arguably the most famous building currently under construction, La Sagrada Familia, found itself in hot water this October when it was determined that it did not have the proper building permits for its century-old site. The church's trustees conceded to paying $41 million in fees over a 10-year period, so that the city can fund public transportation, increase accessibility, and make other improvements to the surrounding area.

↑ Muji's apartment prototype tackles long commutes and highly dense cities

Muji is a design company closely associated with small-scale minimalist objects, but in October the brand demonstrated their skills know no bounds. Equipped with an open communal space and kitchen, the Muji ...

Gaudi's Sagrada Familia fined $41 million for lack of building permit

2018-10-19T13:22:00-04:00

Despite having been under construction for more than 130 years, Gaudí's Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona has lacked the proper paper work. Turns out, the Unesco world heritage site, attracting more than 20 million visitors a year, has never been granted a building permit, the BBC News reports.

After two years of negotiations, an agreement to remedy the situation was finally reached on Thursday. The church's trustees conceded to paying $41 million in fees over a 10-year period, so that the city can fund public transportation, increase accessibility, and make other improvements to the surrounding area.

Ada Colau, Barcelona's far-left mayor, argued that the basilica's board has been working without a permit; has failed to pay proper taxes and fees on construction; and has not submitted the required paperwork for tearing down neighboring residential buildings. According to the Times, the church, on the other hand, contends they were granted a permit in 1885 by Sant Martí de Prove...

PHOTOS: Gaudí's first house, the exuberant Casa Vicens, is opening to the public for the first time

2017-11-03T18:42:00-04:00

Brand Barcelona’s comeback begins with a contribution from its heaviest hitter: Antoni Gaudí. Almost a century after his death, the architect of La Sagrada Familia is still synonymous with the city. On 16 November, Gaudí’s first house, Casa Vicens, begun in 1883, will open permanently to the public for the first time.

With tourism considerably down due to mass demonstrations and political unrest, Catalonia's capital Barcelona is hoping to lure more visitors back when a stunning architectural gem in the Gràcia district opens to the public on November 16: Casa Vicens, a summer house for wealthy industrialist Manel Vicens i Montaner, was the first important commission that the young, and then-unknown, architect Antoni Gaudí received in 1883 — and it would shape the trajectory of all his architectural work to come.

Learn more about Casa Vicens, and the meticulous restoration that took place over the past months, on its official website.

Scroll on for more photographs of the gorgeous building.

All images courtesy of Casa Vicens Gaudí.

Barcelona terrorists were planning a bombing of Sagrada Família

2017-08-23T13:50:00-04:00

The terror cell that brought carnage to north-eastern Spain, killing 15 people and injuring more than 130, was planning attacks on a much larger scale, including the bombing of Barcelona’s Sagrada Família church, a suspect has told a court. Mohamed Houli Chemlal made the admission after being brought before a judge in Madrid, Spanish media reported, quoting court officials.

As the hearing progressed, police were attempting to reconstruct the final 96 hours in the life of the member of the cell who killed 13 people and injured more than 130 others when he drove a hired Fiat van along the crowded Las Ramblas last Thursday.

Barcelona terrorists were planning a bombing of Sagrada Família

2017-08-23T13:50:00-04:00

Gaudí envisioned a parabolic hotel apparently proposed for site of original WTC Twin Towers

2016-07-08T19:23:00-04:00

Dubbed the Hotel Attraction (according to Matamala’s recollection), Gaudí proposed a parabolic skyscraper towering over the city at 360 meters. It would have been the tallest building in the world until the completion of the Empire State Building. The exact location for the proposed tower is unknown, but a group of architects and historians argued that it was intended for the site of the first World Trade Center towers and put it forward for the Ground Zero memorial design competition in 2003.

"Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation" showcases the collaborative efforts to finish Gaudí's towering basilica

2015-04-02T13:25:00-04:00

“What makes [the project] exceptional is the reduction of authorship to a team,” says the architect Mark Burry in Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation, a new film by Stefan Haupt documenting the history, present, and future of perhaps the world’s most famous construction site: the Sagrada Família in Barcelona. Premiering Friday at the Laemmle's Playhouse 7 in Pasadena, the film is a thoughtful, slow-paced consideration of the Antoni Gaudí-designed basilica that has taken over a century to build. In an era in which the architect and their oeuvre often seem to overshadow the singular work itself, the film stands out as a study of various individuals who have, in many cases, devoted their entire lives to a project that they may never see completed.

Paralleling the deferral of authorship by Gaudí, those currently involved in the project appear uniquely devoted to the larger project, even at the expense of their own exposure. Almost like a stage play, the film introduces a series of character...

"Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation" showcases the collaborative efforts to finish Gaudí's towering basilica

2015-04-02T13:25:00-04:00

Gaudí’s uncompleted masterpiece will finally be finished—in ice

2014-06-30T13:54:00-04:00

A group of students at the Eindhoven University of Technology are trying to build a new, temporary version of the monumental church well before then, but with some notable differences. At just over 123 feet tall, their Sagrada Familia will be a 1:4 model of the original. It will be erected on a site in Finland, almost 2,000 miles north of Barcelona. It will take them three weeks to build it this winter, rather than a century. And instead of stone, it will be constructed out of ice.

A 1-Minute Video Shows The Completion Of Gaudí's Sagrada Família

2013-09-30T20:47:00-04:00

A new video, released by the Sagrada Família Foundation, illustrates what some of those changes might look like. Combining helicopter footage with computer-animated renderings, the structure’s final stages take shape before you eyes. Spires shoot up in succession, the central cupola rises into view, and the Glory facade--the church’s principal entrance as outlined by Gaudí--materializes out of thin air.

130 years later, modern software helps complete Gaudi's architectural masterpiece

2013-03-11T15:26:00-04:00

Using advanced aeronautical design software, Mark Burry and other architects have been able to reverse engineer Gaudi's models from leftover shards. Today, Burry is among a group of architects leading construction on the church's central tower, which, when completed, will stand 566 feet above the ground, making it the tallest church on Earth. But the fact that they had to use 21st century software to realize a 19th century vision stands as testament to Gaudi's avant garde design language.

Gaudí's unfinished Sagrada Família does not need a completion date

2011-09-23T14:30:24-04:00

"My client is not in a hurry", Antoni Gaudí is said to have remarked when asked if he was concerned about the time it was taking to build the Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family in Barcelona. According to the Old Testament, Gaudí's client was in much more of a hurry than his architect: he rushed to create the world in just six days, although even He needed a rest on the seventh.

Sagrada Familia reopens after 'arson attack' (BBC)

2011-04-21T12:02:49-04:00

One of Spain's most famous landmarks, the Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona, has been reopened after a suspected arson attack on Tuesday.