Misconceptions

This past weekend I was able to go to Barcelona, Spain with some students. I was excited to see the architecture of Barcelona, but I never expected to be blown away, specifically by Sagrada Familia designed by Antoni Gaudi. I remember learning about the Sagrada Familia in history class, and I recalled that the church was interesting due to its difference in the style that it was designed, but did not think much of the church to further learn about it.

It was Saturday morning that we decided to go to Sagrada Familia. One of the first things that I noticed was the large crowds of people gathering outside the church. The reason for this, we later found out, was the fact that out of the whole year, there is only one day when the Sagrada Familia is opened to the public and we just so happened to visit on that day. There is usually a fee to go in, and we happened to be there on the right day. You could say things were going our way.

As I walked around the church to go inside I was amazed at the amount of detail, not only of the placement of the content but in the organization of it, and how in some places it appeared to be in every inch of the façade. What captivated my attention even more was the interior of the church. As I entered I was amazed at how day lighted the interior was, due to the height, the openings in the wall, and the interior color of the church. Then when I looked up I was further amazed, astonished at how the structure, columns and the overall design came together. As it is not fully completed, I can only imagine what it one day will become. From my misconception of what I thought Sagrada Familia was, and from what I was learning from walking around and in the church, I decided to do an in depth research of the church.
Since then I have learned that its construction began when Josep Maria Bocabella President and Founder of the Association and Devotees of Saint Joseph, decided to build a temple funded by Bocabellas own savings and donations from worshipers. On March 19, 1882 the first stone was laid. In 1883 Francisco del Villar, the architect that had initially begun the project resigned. It was November third 1883, that Antoni Gaudi took over as architect of what has come to be the Sagrada Familia (the Sacred Family). “The architect envisaged the Sagrada Famila as a Bible made of stone, which told the history and mysteries of the Christian faith.”
Below is some information that was obtained from a book I purchased while at Sagrada Familia. The book is called Guide to the temple of the Sagrada Familia. There is so much information regarding the Sagrada Familia, but as I have already taken up quite a bit of space, hopefully this serves as a glimpses of how detail the church is and that it is waiting for us to discover it.

Exterior- represents the Church by means of apostles, evangelists, the Virgin and the saints. The cross which tops the main tower (not yet completed), symbolizes the triumph of Jesus Church and façade evoke three moments in Christ’s lifetime: his birth (Nativity), death (Passion), and resurrection ( Glory).

Interior- refers to the universal church and the crossing to the Celestial Jerusalem.
Dimensions- 5 longitudinal naves
Transept- 60 meters long by 45 meters wide (approximately 197feet by 147 feet) Length from entrance to apse- 90 meters (approximately 295 feet)
Central nave- 15 meters wide (approximately 50 feet)
other four naves measure half- 7.5 meters (approximately 25 feet)
The central nave vaults height- 45 meters (approximately 197 feet)
others height- 30 meters (approximately 98 feet)
The vaults below the cimborio reach 60 meters (approximately 197 feet)
The vaults of the apse soar to 75 (approximately 250 feet)
(a floor plan is included to help with the dimensions)

Inspiration- Nature- specifically plants and trees
Some animals include: lizards, snails, frogs, snakes, among others, tend to be placed where gargoyles normally would be.

A lesson that I learned in Barcelona is that, there is always more information and explanations to the reasoning of everything. That lesson was reinstated today in our history tour, specifically with the Basilica di San Clemente, when you first see the church, being here in Rome, you know that there is something very special about the church and usually in the inside. I however was not expecting it to be built on the structure of a past private house, or that there were so many levels and rooms beneath the church. It goes to show that when we initially perceive things we make assumptions, but in many cases we couldn’t be farther away from the truth. Or in my case with the Sagrada Familia and the Basilica di San Clemente, that we see things, and we take them to be what they are, that we only take part of their meaning in. I learned the importance in searching for more information, to look deeper into things; otherwise we may miss out on understanding the reasoning behind the buildings construction. Having learned this I feel like I need to go back and look at the things I have seen here in Rome, or for that matter in many other places and reanalyze them, but this time with more information, and I am guessing, that if I do this that I will fall in love with all these buildings in a new way, just like with Sagrada Familia, and how it took me by surprise.