The last time we were in Barcelona, we didn't have enough time to visit the famous Sagrada Familia, so this time we made sure to check out some of the Antoni Gaudí sites. Antoni Gaudí is a famous Catalonian architect with a unique "organic" style based on natural forms. However, if you ask Dom, he is an Architect that really like Ice Cream Sundaes - as that's what his works kinda look like.
Sagrada Familia
The Sagrada Familia is probably the most known work by Gaudi. In 1882, he started building this church that he knew would take over a hundred years to complete. When asked about the fact that he would never see his greatest work completed, he allegedly responded that his client (God) is in no hurry. Gaudi sketched and modelled the church's design so that future generations could complete the construction. Unfortunately, during the civil war, many of those drawings, maquettes, and parts of the church where destroyed, so we will never see his final work the way he originally envisioned it... but it will be grandiose none the less!
Sketches
When we walked around the Sagrada Familia 2 years ago, we thought we were viewing the facades of the front and the back of the church. After the tour, we discovered that those elaborate facades are actually just the sides of the church with temporary entrances! There's still plenty of work to be done on the church as 1 of the the remaining sides will eventually become the grand entrance... hopefully we'll get to return to see the finished work, which they're estimating will be completed around 2028!
As crazy as the church's exterior is, the most interesting part is definitely the inside structures and stained glass - it’s breathtakingly beautiful!
Gingerbread and Ice Cream!
Gaudi was famous for architecting several buildings in Barcelona. We visited a few other Gaudi creations and learned about his unique approach to architecture.
Looking at these 2 pictures you must admit that Gaudi's creations look like ice cream sundae and gingerbread houses!
In brief, his style mimics shapes and forms found in nature because God created nature, and nature is therefore perfect. According to Gaudi, there are no straight lines in nature, so you will rarely see any straight lines in any of his works (hence the melting-ice cream appearance :)).
