The Sagrada Familia: Gaudí's Heaven on Earth

by Gijs van Hensbergen

A definitive and illuminating biography of one of the most famous--and most famously unfinished--buildings in the world, the Sagrada Familia of Barcelona.

Antoni Gaudí's masterpiece, the Sagrada Familia, epitomizes the architect's quixotic ambition, his religious devotion, and the sensuous eccentricity of his design. Its scaffolding-cloaked spires reach up to the heavens, dominating the Barcelona skyline and drawing in millions of visitors every year. What seduces our attention is not only its architectural extravagance but the sheer longevity of its construction. More than a century after Gaudí saw the first stone laid in 1882, the Sagrada Familia remains unfinished, unlikely to be completed until 2026 at the very earliest. It has survived two World Wars, the ravages of the Spanish Civil War and the “Hunger Years” of Franco's rule. It has defied the critics, the penny-pinching accountants, the conservative town-planners, and the devotees of sterile modernism; it has enchanted and frustrated the citizens of Barcelona; and it has passed through some of the most momentous changes in society and history.

The Sagrada Familia explores the evolution of this remarkable building, working through the decades right up to the present day before looking beyond to the final stretch of its construction. At once a guidebook and a history, it is also a moving study of man's aspiration toward the divine. Rich in detail, vast in scope, this is a revelatory chronicle of an iconic structure, its place in history, and the wild genius that created it.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Architecture, Art, Spain, Biography, Travel

204 pages, Hardcover

Published July 25, 2017

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

On a recent trip to Europe, the Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona was easily my favorite of all the places we visited. Wanting to know more about this amazing and inspiring structure, I picked up this book. While not a particularly easy read, the story was well worth the effort. The paperback was completely devoid of pictures, so I spent the extra time to Google every building the author referenced, which added immeasurably to my understanding and appreciation of Gaudi. (In fact, we learned that a building that had fascinated me which stood directly across from our hotel in Barcelona was, in fact, one of Gaudi’s lesser known works!) If you are fascinated by Gaudi and his architecture, then this book will be well worth the effort. If you are not so inclined, you probably won’t enjoy it.

[Trish Graboske · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keep your pc/tablet by your side, and look everything up that needs a picture, and you'll be fine.

[Gregory Butera · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first 10 pages of this were so great I had to read it. And then...meh. Finally gave up before page 60 despite many attempts to power through. This reads much more like a graduate school thesis than a book of history or architecture, or history of architecture. It needs illustrations to show the fascinating sculpture of the surrealist facades and interiors of this magnificent cathedral. It needs something else, a timeline, a different structure, more of the background or history of the people involved and the times, less detail about some segments of the story. I wish I could have gotten into it because Gaudi's cathedral is one of the most breathtaking buildings I have ever experienced, and had hoped this book would illuminate it further. But the writing fell flat.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very unique book. It is about a subject I have never heard of before. It is a biography of 0ne of the most famous and unfinished building in the world, the Sagrada Familla in Barcelona. Millions of people flock to it to each year. It was started in 1882 and is still unfinished due to many facctors such as Gaudi's ambition, and his being eccentric and picky about the design. The modern day day planners are not for it. It has survived wars and Franco. This book explains the evolution of this building right up until now.

[Googie Daniels · Rating 2 out of 5]

You'd think there'd be more history on the actual building and architect, but the author goes into historical detail (and jumps timelines) every two paragraphs.... Disorganized writing without a constant theme to follow.

[Jan Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first chapter or two were great but after that I found myself ploughing through pages of extreme detail that challenged my intellect somewhat. Like another reviewer, it began to read like a thesis, involving too much detail of other architects’ influences and contributions. I found myself speed-reading certain parts but the section on the uprising and macabre goings-on in the latter third of the book made quite shocking reading if you know Barcelona well. Hard to imagine the horror of the times! It is quite astounding that the building work has continued despite the setbacks and wanton destruction of so many of Gaudi’s models and plans and it is a testimony to the power of art and architecture in the hearts of those who love Gaudi’s work. I think that the book might have benefitted from a few illustrations but they could not replace an actual visit to see for yourself the stunning interior and the play of light through those wonderful windows. If you visit later in the day when the sun is beginning to wane, you are treated to the sight of a rainbow of colours flooding the glorious interior.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting history of a fascinating work of architecture. The perfect book to read before and during our honeymoon in Barcelona. I loved being able to see the Sagrada Familia knowing the story behind its design and (continued) construction.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short and wonderfully-written history (so far) of the Sagrada Familia. You will definitely need to get some kind of coffee table book with pictures of all Gaudi's main works, as well as the Sagrada (or look them up online) otherwise the book won't be as illuminating. This book is quite heavy on the political and historical context of the building of the cathedral and less detailed on the religious and biographical context, which is fine. But readers might want to see the author's biography of Gaudi as well.

I cannot recommend enough the wonderful film, Sagrada: the Mystery of Creation. It is really moving, thanks in great part to the photography. The film also spends quite a lot of time with the Japanese scultpor Etsuro Sotoo. Sotoo is a fascinating person--from Japan, he left his country decades ago after feeling called by the stones lying in wait at the Sagrada building site... after learning Spanish, he then converted to Roman Catholicism and insists that it is through the lens of Gaudi's faith that one must approach the miracle of La Sagrada Familia.
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/201...

I was so happy that van Hensbergen ended his book with the story of Satoo--who is, I believe, the only official sculptor working on La Sagrada Familia. A remarkable man from Japan.

[Mackay · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting "biography" of the famed Sagrada Familia temple in Barcelona, including a focused biography of its creator, Antoni Gaudi. But I was massively disappointed in this book. It is expensive ($36/hardback) for fewer than 200 pp. plus index - and wholly lacks vital elements, such as illustrations - not a diagram, photo, or line drawing anywhere... which makes for a rather blank read, if one is unfamiliar with the building or the architectural styles discussed. I think I learned very little that I hadn't got from the guidebooks onsite, which seems wrong.
At least I have visited the temple so was able to visualize from experience what the heck van Hensbergen was writing about... If one hasn't, one might as well skip this.

[Karl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned quite a lot from the book, very interesting. The book has no pictures which is definitely a drawback. You will want to read this with your iPad nearby so you can search for images online.

[Joel Wakefield · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed immersing myself in the early development of La Sagrada Familia, this book provides. I don't know enough about architectural history or the details of the evolution and trends in Catholic doctrine to be able to appreciate the rich detail here to its fullest, but this served as a good introduction to the topics for someone like me. Also, since the development of La Sagrada Familia is so intertwined with so much of the social and political culture in that region over the last 175 years, I unexpectedly came away with deeper understanding of Spanish and Catalan history as well.
I did find myself wanting more in the last two chapters covering the story after the Civil War. Granted, not much happened on the building for 40-50 years, so perhaps that is to be expected for the time between the mid 1930s through the mid 1980s. But my first visit to the site was in 1985 when the building was little but a shell, with a perfunctory tour around the Nativity Façade, through what was essentially just a construction storage site inside the structure, and then up the staircases into the towers and down. I have visited several times since then, and have watched the exponential expansion in energy and the emergence of astounding beauty out of what seemed essentially to be just concrete and dust. I wanted to know more about how that happened, what was behind the transformation of the site from a place with a few workers here and there in the 1980s to a site where every year's developments bring new surprises and majesty. I'll keep looking for that book, which I think would be almost as interesting as the initial building process under Gaudí.
Note, I marked this as a book I recommend, but with the caveat that it is really a book for someone who wants to be immersed in the history and doctrinal foundations of Gaudí's mind and work. It is not structured as a day to day chronology, and although it is relatively short, it isn't what i would consider a "quick read."

[Ian Durant · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A curate’s egg”, and all the better for it. I feared that I was embarking either on an academic treatise or a travel guide. Either would have been unsatisfactory - the former too turgid and the latter too mechanical. Instead the author has attempted something more ambitious, that is an essay for the layman to provide a context for this most complex of buildings over its 130 year development.. He was thereby covering Spanish political and social history (especially the trauma of the Spanish Civil War, Franco, the Clergy and growing Catalan sensibilities), the architectural and artistic achievements in the context of the development (and challenges) of the Catholic Church, the life stories of those involved over 130 years, and even the more recent impact of tech on architecture. He achieves this with a deft touch in a readable 186 page book. I applaud and am looking forward to my second visit to the Sagrada with just a little more insight than on my first, 15 years ago.

[Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find this book a little difficult if you don't have a bit of basic knowledge in the architectural domain, to understand the art references given and structural details of the basilica. Also it gives alot of historical details about the political, social background and also the religious unrest during those times, that are a bit hard to follow but also very enlightening and revelatory, as far as I learned, because it makes you understand better the great complex of symbols which the basilica is. I read this book before going to Barcelona and it helped me very much into seeing and feeling the structure like I already was there. It gives depth to ones eye, deeper understanding. If you are a lover of strong symbols, faith driven wonders that men can create, an architect fascinated by the work of Gaudí, like in my case, then this book is a great reading.

[Trebledb · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a primer for visiting Gaudi's Familia Sagrada for the first time this book likely can't be beat. The writing is sat times convoluted and this may have to do with either the translation or its author being a non native english writer. However, I learned a lot and appreciated the depth to which the author went in his own study of his subject. This is a great example of the reader benefiting from the author's years of work.

[Montse · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep dive into the history and construction of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain. For the reader who thrives on details, this biography of this basilica is an essential read. The recommendation of another reviewer to keep your PC or tablet a handy is well worth heeding, given the lack of photos to accompany the text (hence, 4-star rating). A nice sidebar to this read is the following blog: https://blog.sagradafamilia.org/en/

[Alexander Highfield]

An informative but not exhaustive/boring book on Gaudi’s masterpiece. It gave a good overview of the history of the building, starting with a little background on Gaudi, placing it into the different religious and political contexts. Hensbergen really conveyed Gaudi’s sense of religious duty when embarking on the project (‘the client – God – is in no hurry’), explaining his mission as one of the evangelism of beauty.

[Tori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview of the Sagrada Familia. I had hoped for a slightly more compelling narrative retelling that broke down the distinctive structural architecture, and how Gaudi was providing new solutions to old questions instead of just telling me he was. Something more like _Brunelleschi's Dome_. But it's a pretty short read and helped set the development of the basilica against the various political happenings in Spain.

[Sally Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Spanish really don’t like to translate the names of their art work or books written. It was so hard to follow those items. However, I learned so much about Gaudi and the Sagrada Familia along side Spain and Catalonia’s history. I was amazed to know how many different artists and architects worked on the cathedral. Gaudi was so good about bringing up beginners and sharing his knowledge and visions for the project with his team that they were able to continue without him.

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the book was interesting from a historical perspective regarding Gaudi’s start of the project, his methodology to the project and transition to others after his passing, it was a hard and difficult read. References to Spanish names, and references to other Spanish texts and events, made it difficult for those unfamiliar with the language. Some photos and drawings would have made it more interesting.

[Rooju Chokshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a useful book that dives into the fascinating story of Antoni Gaudi & his pursuit of his dream of bringing La Sagrada Familia to life. The conception, intrigue and machinations behind this extraordinary monument in Barcelona are well covered and personally it gave me a much appreciated context during my visit to the city.

[Lauren (: · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very dense book that I was very determined to finish. It was very interesting to read more about the history of the building as well as how history affected the building. I am still very curious to see La Sagrada Familia in person with more knowledge about its construction than prior to reading this novel.

[Jamie Lyon · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of an art history book and I was hoping for more of a descriptive "tour" kind of book.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating, and personal, account of the Sagrada Familia from its origins to the present day.

[Chips O'Toole · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 for this one. Lots of great information and storytelling, but there were several long stretches where I drowned in names and political intrigue.

[Alice Chau-Ginguene · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a good book but written in a very dry and academic format. Not what I expected. Found it difficult to finish. Be prepared that this is not a casual read.

[Kodiaksm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was expecting to read primarily about the building. Instead, the Catholic Church was discussed far more than I was interested.

[Les Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read. A bit of a slog for a book so thin.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating!

[James Allred · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are a huge Gaudi or Sagrada Familia fan, you might enjoy. Otherwise you shouldn’t invest.

[Barb Cherem · Rating 2 out of 5]

Abandoned as overly dense in its discussion. I will be visiting this marvel in March and got the book but it has no photos and was a bit academic for my tastes. So, I returned it after a scanning.