Antoni Gaudí's Sacred Masterpiece Mired in Its Creator’s Vision

THE NEW YORK TIMES
By Ben Kenigsberg

The church, unfinished. Credit First Run Features

HOLLYWOOD---Visitors to Barcelona could do worse than watch “Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation,” a documentary primer on the Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família. The Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí labored over the church for most of his life but never completed it. He died in 1926 after being hit by a tram. Still under construction more than 130 years after Gaudí was commissioned, the church is a popular destination for tourists, yet it is mired in controversy. The question of how to proceed has been confounded over the years by war, lack of money, the destruction of Gaudí's models and Barcelona’s urban development. The movie is ideally viewed while waiting in line to see the church. [link]