Barcelona, Spain - La Sagrada Familia Passion Facade

I just took the photos, many many photos, so that I would have them to look at when I returned home and could research this building.  The Passion Facade is quite a work of art so scroll through the photos and take it all in. I put a description at the end of the post so that you could experience my experience.  Look, look, look, read about it, then return to the photos to look with new eyes.

Center statues are "Peter's Denial".  The three women on the left represent the three times of the denial. "The Rooster", to the left of the women, looks towards dawn.

At the top is "The Crucifixion".  It is described at the end of the post.
Lower section of the photo has seventeen figures.  Titled "Jesus cami del Calvari". 

This is a close-up of "Jesus cami del Calvari".
From the sculture's website:

The most numerous group is formed by seventeen figures and represents Jesus' second fall and his meeting with the women of Jerusalem, including Veronica presenting the imprinted face of Jesus. Veronica is represented without features since she is a legendary character, whereas Jesus' face is sculpted in negative form to suggest the mark left on the cloth. Both the size and the treatment of Jesus' face are in no way similar to the other figures, giving thus the impression that he has not been sculpted, but that he is the authentic face of the Messiah. A little away from the scene, a character observes and writes: he represents the evangelist that, as a chronicler, takes notes of what is occurring. As a tribute to Gaudí, the sculptor has taken inspiration for this figure from a well-known photograph of the architect. It should be noted that soldiers' helmets also evoke Gaudí, since they recall the chimney-like forms of 'La Pedrera' and accentuate the impersonal and cruel appearance of the warriors.

Left is part of "Peter's Denial" showing a remorseful peter.
On the right is "Jesus' Judgment" before Pontius Pilate.

This is a close-up of "Jesus' Judgment".  The frontal composition makes the viewer part of the episode.  The group of statues are seperated by a column with an eagle on top, see in the middle top of the photo.   Barely visible on the right hand side is Pontius Pilate (the back of his robe) waashing his hands.

"The Cyrenean" .  A description from the sculptur's website.  Note that there are two other women to the left of the one that we can see.

In the episode of Jesus' first fall, as well as the Cyrenian helping him carry the cross, there is a female figure that is repeated three times to represent, through a kinetic effect, the mother of Jesus, Mary of Cleophas and Mary Magdalene.

Lower right corner is "Judas' Betrayal".
Soldier on a horse is "Longinus the Soldier", the man who wounded Jesus with a spear.

Statue in the upper right is "Judas' Betrayal".
Statue in the center is "The Flagellation".
Notice the Alpha and Omega carving at the entrance.
Door of the Gospel of Matthew (Left) and Door of the Gospel of John (Right).

A close-up of "Judas' Betrayal".  Notice the snake in the lower right.

"Alpha and Omega" The Alpha and Omega symbol is depicted in a sculpted block of travertine stone and situated in the cross created by the mullion of the façade's central doorway and the lintel.

"The Crucifixion".  From the artist's website:

In the centre of the highest point of the atrium is the imposing image of Jesus nailed to the cross. The crucified Jesus appears nude, hung from the arms, with his feet unnailed and the body leaning towards the emptiness as if he were about to plummet down on top of the spectator. We emphasize the unconventional choice of directing the cross horizontally. The cross is made from iron girders, so that the profile if seen from the front forms an "I", the first letter of the "INRI" lettering. To emphasize the tragic setting, the composition is deliberately asymmetrical. On the left we see a group formed by Jesus' mother, John the disciple, Mary of Cleophas and Mary Magdalene, whilst on the other side of the cross all we see is a skull, fashioned realistically, given that death is what dominates the scene at Mount Calvary. An existing opening in the architecture of the façade has been left open to suggest the entry to the tomb. Further up, like a canopy covering the scene, there is the veil of the Temple of Jerusalem, which is ripped, signifying that the history of humanity has, since then, become divided into the eras before and after Christ.

Now, read this excerpt from wikipedia, then go back through the photos to see and understand so much more.

In contrast to the highly decorated Nativity Façade, the Passion Façade is austere, plain and simple, with ample bare stone, and is carved with harsh straight lines to resemble a skeleton if it were reduced to only bone. Dedicated to the Passion of Christ, the suffering of Jesus during his crucifixion, the façade was intended to portray the sins of man. Construction began in 1954, following the drawings and instructions left by Gaudí for future architects and sculptors. The towers were completed in 1976, and in 1987 a team of sculptors, headed by Josep Maria Subirachs, began work sculpting the various scenes and details of the façade. They aimed to give a rigid, angular form to provoke a dramatic effect. Gaudí intended for this façade to strike fear into the onlooker. He wanted to "break" arcs and "cut" columns, and to use the effect of chiaroscuro (dark angular shadows contrasted by harsh rigid light) to further show the severity and brutality of Christ's sacrifice.
Facing the setting sun, indicative and symbolic of the death of Christ, the Passion Façade is supported by six large and inclined columns, designed to resemble sequoia trunks. Above there is a pyramidal pediment, made up of eighteen bone-shaped columns, which culminate in a large cross with a crown of thorns. Each of the four towers is dedicated to an apostle (James, Thomas, Philip, or Bartholomew) and, like the Nativity Façade, there are three porticos, each representing the theological virtues, though in a much different light.
The scenes sculpted into the façade may be divided into three levels, which ascend in an 'S' form and reproduce the Calvary, or Golgotha, of Christ. The lowest level depicts scenes from Jesus' last night before the crucifixion, including The Last Supper, Kiss of Judas, Ecce Homo, and the Sanhedrin Trial of Jesus. The middle level portrays the Calvary, or Golgotha, of Christ, and includes The Three Marys, Saint Veronica, Saint Longinus, and a hollow-face illusion of Christ. In the third and final level the Death, Burial and the Resurrection of Christ can be seen. A bronze figure situated on a bridge creating a link between the towers of Saint Bartholomew and Saint Thomas represents the Ascension of Jesus.

Click to see La Sagrada Familia Interior
Click to see La Sagrada Familia Nativity Facade

Artist: JOSEP MARIA SUBIRACHS SITJAR from Barcelona.
To see all of the details on the artist's website, go to click here,.  On the right you will see "Select a Route".  Use the dropdown and select "Barcelona Passion Facade of the Sagrada Familia" and click "GO".  If the link doesn't work, go to www.eng.subirachs.cat, then select "The Work" and "The Route" and follow the dropdown instructions above.