Interior of the nave, Sagrada Família, Barcelona (Photo: SBA73, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0)

The Sagrada Familia has long occupied the threshold between vision and impossibility. Conceived by Antoni Gaudí as an interplay of faith, craft, and geometry, the basilica has remained incomplete for more than a century, an unfinished work embedded in the fabric of Barcelona.

This presentation with Tristram Carfrae explores what it means to complete such a work in the 21st century. Carfrae will examine the radical act of translating Gaudí’s extraordinary forms into contemporary construction. Prefabricated stone panels have been manufactured off-site directly from 3D models and then assembled onsite, all while staying true to Gaudí’s original vision.

For more than a decade, Tristram Carfrae and Arup have worked not simply to finish Gaudí’s architecture but to inhabit his imagination. Their work has pushed the limits of geometry, demanded precision at an unprecedented scale, and sought to reconcile history with innovation.