Landed at Barcelona on a low rainy day. Ill-equipped for the weather, the effort was to grab an umbrella and some rainy footwear. As I had packed my itinerary so tight with several places to visit, rains couldn't stop me. I used thick polythene as socks to step out and explore the city. I had an appointment at 3:00 pm to visit La Sagrada Familia, the famous under construction basilica in Spain. As I stepped out of the metro station, this towering structure made me feel so tiny. The grandeur, the splendour, the details and the enormous patience and efforts silenced me. For about 5 hours, I was just silently observing each and every corner of Antoni Gaudi's work. One can spend hours, days and months and yet won't be able to imbibe the details.
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This massive basilica is still under construction. Two of its faces - The Nativity and Passion facade now stand completed. The third face - Glory Facade is underway. Each of the facade has a story to tell.
Nativity facade recreates the celebration for the birth of Jesus Christ and narrates stories about charity, hope and faith. Each inch of the facade is adorned and ornamented with sculptures of people, animals and trees which tie the story together.
Passion Facade evokes the various stages of sufferings in the life of Jesus Christ. In terms of formal expression it is quite contrary to the nativity facade as the figurines have bare and chiselled edges to evoke the sharp sense of suffering.
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The interior of the basilica resembles a forest of filtering lights and tree shaped columns. It was very visually very busy with people, their conversations, audio visual presentations, announcements, and filtering light. Each line traced the numerous geometries derived from nature.
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This massive basilica is still under construction. Two of its faces - The Nativity and Passion facade now stand completed. The third face - Glory Facade is underway. Each of the facade has a story to tell.
Nativity facade recreates the celebration for the birth of Jesus Christ and narrates stories about charity, hope and faith. Each inch of the facade is adorned and ornamented with sculptures of people, animals and trees which tie the story together.
Passion Facade evokes the various stages of sufferings in the life of Jesus Christ. In terms of formal expression it is quite contrary to the nativity facade as the figurines have bare and chiselled edges to evoke the sharp sense of suffering.
The interior of the basilica resembles a forest of filtering lights and tree shaped columns. It was very visually very busy with people, their conversations, audio visual presentations, announcements, and filtering light. Each line traced the numerous geometries derived from nature.
Three Pillars
Gaudi while designing the columns worked with geometry, material and form to support different intensities of loads. The red column which was are the largest and the tallest are made up of hard volcanic rock - red porphyry. Next to them in the above picture are the darker and smaller columns made of basalt. The third set of column - the white one is made of softer sedimentary rock.
Resolution & Method
The basement of the basilica exhibits the entire journey of the project from ideation to detailing and execution methods. Gaudi used the technique of hanging the ropes with sand bags. This method helped him to visualize and finalize the final form of the arches and his structure. A mirror was placed beneath these installations to see the actual form.
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The facades of the basilica were ornamented with stained glass windows. Those on top filtered as much day light as possible which lit the ceiling and central nave. Each side created a different tone and mood through its lighting. Some were busy with a mix of colours ranging from red to yellow, while some created a sense of calmness with tones of blue.
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Filtering Light
The facades of the basilica were ornamented with stained glass windows. Those on top filtered as much day light as possible which lit the ceiling and central nave. Each side created a different tone and mood through its lighting. Some were busy with a mix of colours ranging from red to yellow, while some created a sense of calmness with tones of blue.
