Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia Basilica has been visited by millions of tourists since construction began in 1882 – and it hasn’t been finished since. Now, the Sagrada Familia Foundation has released a video that shows the world what Antoni Gaudi’s masterpiece will look like when it is finally completed in 2026. The project will be completed in accordance with the original design, and it is being overseen by architect Jordi Bonet, who is the son of an architect who worked with Gaudi. Read on to learn how Bonet is using 3D scanning to accelerate the design process.
Albeit unfinished, the Sagrada Familia is considered one of Barcelona’s most important monuments. The immense building is was inspired by forms in nature, and it was initially funded solely by donation, which in part explains the slow construction. When Gaudi died in 1926, the project was still just 15-25 percent complete, and now 100 years after his death, it is slowly nearing completion.
Bonet at the Sagrada Familia Foundation turned to modern computer based techniques to help speed up work. New construction processes including CNC-milled stone and 3D scanning have helped to continue Gaudi’s intended design, while also applying modern, more efficient practices to the basilica. Part of Gaudi’s plans have been lost over the years, largely during a raid by Catalan anarchists during the Spanish Civil War, but Bonet and his team hope that 3D scanning will help ensure the design is completed as Gaudi had envisioned.
The video, derived from a combination of helicopter footage and 3D rendering, shows rising spires and a completed glory façade as Gaudi dreamed them.
+ Sagrada Familia Foundation
ViaFast Company
