More than one hundred years after the beginning of its construction, Antonio Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia is entering a new building stage to become the tallest church in Europe, according to Jordi Fauli, the chief architect of this project. Ninety years after Gaudi’s accidental death, his iconic building is entering the process of being finished, following his design. Two years ago, the Basilica de la Sagrada Familia, the church’s official foundation, released a video showing an animated render of the building undergoing the completion of all its towers.
In 1926, the year of Antonio Gaudi’s death, less than a quarter of the building had been finished, and only in 2010, the construction reached the midpoint of its completion. In the same year, it installed an organ, making it suitable” for religious services,” and consecrated it as a minor basilica.
@La Sagrada Familia
Although the initial Gaudi’s plans were destroyed in a fire, his follower and collaborator Domènec Sugrañes was able to recreate the project’s original design, and his drawings were further used as references for the architects and builders. With 18 towers, each of them having different heights, according to the hierarchy it was dedicated to, the church is expected, upon its completion, to become the tallest church in Europe.
@La Sagrada Familia
The towers are estimated to be finished by 2026 to celebrate one hundred years after the death of its creator, but the work might take a few more years to finish all the decoration pieces. Although it is far from complete, Sagrada Familia is a part of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, along with six other Gaudi buildings, as praise for “Gaudí’s exceptional creative contribution to the development of architecture and building technology.” Private resources, donations, and tourist fees fund the construction.