is what Gaudi is said to have remarked on the subject of the extremely long construction period.

If there’s one thing for you to know about Sagrada Família it’s that construction started in the year 1882, 133 years ago. It’s projected year for completion is 2026-2028.

Sagrada Família‘s construction has progressed slowly, as it relies on private donations and was interrupted by the Spanish Civil War, only to resume intermittent progress in the 1950s. Construction passed the midpoint in 2010 with some of the project‘s greatest challenges remaining.

The other thing you must know about Sagrada Família is that Gaudi died 43 years into the construction. He devoted his last years to the project, and at the time of his death at age 73 in 1926, less than a quarter of the project was complete.

This is how he died:

“On 7 June 1926, Gaudí was taking his daily walk to the Sant Felip Neri church for his habitual prayer and confession. While walking along the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes between Girona and Bailén streets, he was struck by a passing tram and lost consciousness. Assumed to be a beggar because of his lack of identity documents and shabby clothing, the unconscious Gaudí did not receive immediate aid. Eventually a police officer transported him in a taxi to the Santa Creu Hospital, where he received rudimentary care. By the time that the chaplain of the Sagrada Família, Mosén Gil Parés, recognised him on the following day, Gaudí‘s condition had deteriorated too severely to benefit from additional treatment. Gaudí died on 10 June 1926 at the age of 73 and was buried two days later. A large crowd gathered to bid farewell to him in the chapel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in the crypt of the Sagrada Família.” - Wikipedia

“Parts of the unfinished basilica and Gaudí‘s models and workshop were destroyed during the war by Catalan anarchists. The present design is based on reconstructed versions of the plans that were burned in a fire as well as on modern adaptations. Since 1940 the architects Francesc Quintana, Isidre Puig Boada, Lluís Bonet i Gari and Francesc Cardoner have carried on the work.” - Wikipedia

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