Sagrada Familia, an indoor forest

Barcelona's Sagrada Familia, the Catholic basilica, designed by "God's Architect" Antoni Gaudí, is unlike any other man-made space in the world, let alone other churches.

Gaudí's influence was always nature, whether it came to decoration, engineering, or symbolism. And it is most obvious from the interior of this church.

The lighted "knots" way up on the columns mimic healed
wounds on a tree when a branch is pruned close to the trunk.

Gaudí wanted there to be as much light as possible to enter the church -
but no too much. He controlled it like a wizard.

Nary a right angle or straight edge can be found in the entire building.
This circular stairwell looks more like a serpent, or skeleton of a sea creature.

The Crucifix is under is hanging parachute-like, suspended structure.

The ceiling over the alter indicated an oculus –
though it was not open to the sky. It did look heavenly though.

I was also intrigued by the number of lights actually incorporated into the building and design.
The benefit of designing a structure in the last 100 years.

The columns start at ground level with rounded flutes, they get more sharp as they climb.
The columns eventually turn into branches, supporting the roof of organic leaf-shapes.

Good shot of how the columns transition into branches.

The effect of the branching columns can really only be appreciated when standing in the building (in awe).
As nice as some of these photos are, they are nothing compared to sanding in the space.

This is a mock-up of what the front door to the church will be, It is the Lord's Prayer in Spanish.
Love a building with typography.

The holy water font, or stoup, is an over-sized shell. I'm not Catholic. I had to look up its name!

Then repeated pattern of all the columns and complex ceiling design is mesmerizing.

Words cannot describe...

To the side of the church is an exhibition showing Gaudí influences was enlightening.
These tower pinnacle structures are based on the buds and spikes of native cereals and grasses.
Actually, they're not as much inspired by as just large replicas of the actual spikes.

An example of the column light well transitions from trunk to branches,
modeled after the scar formed on a tree when a branch is pruned.