Suspended 172 metres above Barcelona within the cross that crowns the Sagrada Família’s Tower of Jesus Christ, Andrea Mastrovito’s Gv 1,29 gives physical form to the Agnus Dei—the Lamb of God envisioned by Antoni Gaudí as the symbolic culmination of the basilica.
Hand-crafted from hollow glass and covered in thousands of crystal fragments, the lamb is surrounded by a radiant structure of gold and steel. The title refers to John 1:29: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.”
Studio Waldemeyer was commissioned to develop the work’s artificial illumination. The challenge was to bring the sculpture to life after dark without allowing the technology to compete with either Mastrovito’s artwork or Gaudí’s architecture.
A system of carefully concealed ultraviolet light activates phosphorescent material incorporated into the lamb’s fleece. Biblical inscriptions emerge from the darkness, while the crystalline body appears to generate an ethereal light of its own. The sources, wiring and engineering remain hidden; only their effect is perceived.
The work exists through three interwoven forms of illumination: sunlight refracted through glass, artificial light embedded within the structure, and the symbolic radiance of gold. By day, it catches and transforms the changing natural light. At night, the lamb takes on a mysterious internal glow.
CREDITS
Artwork: Andrea Mastrovito
Lighting design and engineering: Studio Waldemeyer
Commissioned by: Junta Constructora de la Sagrada Família
Location: Tower of Jesus Christ, Basílica de la Sagrada Família, Barcelona
For Studio Waldemeyer, the project expresses a central principle: technology achieves its greatest power when it disappears. Here, engineering becomes an invisible medium—supporting the artwork, preserving its sense of wonder and helping to realise a vision conceived more than a century ago.
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