Visualizing Gaudí’s Unbuilt New York Skyscraper

A long-forgotten skyscraper envisioned by Antoni Gaudí for New York City has been revitalized through detailed visualizations. These renderings, including its surreal interiors, depict what might have been an extraordinary building. Journalist Daniel Coughlin has recreated Hotel Attraction, a tower designed by Gaudí in 1908, commissioned by unknown American businessmen. Coughlin’s YouTube channel, The Curious Compendium of Architectural What-Ifs, showcases this and other unrealized urban projects.

Previous portrayals have emphasized the tower’s striking exterior. However, Coughlin’s latest work delves into its interiors, featuring vast ceremonial halls, themed cultural spaces, and monumental chambers. If constructed, the 1,181-foot structure would have dominated Lower Manhattan as the world’s tallest building until the 1930s Empire State Building.

The revived interest in Hotel Attraction coincides with Gaudí’s centenary of death. He passed on June 10, 1926, while construction continues on his renowned Sagrada Família, now over 140 years in progress.

Earlier this year, the Sagrada Família added the upper arm of a cross to its Jesus Christ tower, reaching 565 feet and 11 inches, nearing the completion of the world’s tallest church, expected within a decade.

A Vertical World of Themed Halls

Coughlin aimed to explore what Hotel Attraction might have looked like in today’s Lower Manhattan. He focused on Church Street, near the Jenga Tower, presenting it not as fantasy but as a conceivable addition to the cityscape. The interiors were envisioned as more than a typical luxury hotel, planned as a blend of hotel, cultural complex, and vertical city.

Visitors would enter through impressive entrances into a 56-foot-high reception hall. Gaudí’s distinctive ceramic mosaic, trencadís, would have adorned both interior and exterior surfaces.

Hotel Attraction’s design included themed spaces reflecting worldwide regions. The first floor, called the America Room, led to the Europa Hall, functioning as dining, concert, and theater space. Later levels focused on Asia, Australia, Africa, museums, and galleries.

Hotel Attraction’s variety of functions surprised Coughlin. More than a hotel, the lower towers included apartments while central structures housed museums, theaters, and observation areas. Below ground, practical spaces encompassed kitchens, garages, and storage. This combination of spectacle and infrastructure presented a self-contained vertical world.

The Tower’s Most Astonishing Room

At the summit, the Tribute to America Room formed Hotel Attraction’s centerpiece. This vast hall measured about 410 feet tall, with a 33-foot Statue of Liberty replica surrounded by patriotic sculptures. For Coughlin, this room captured the project’s ambition. Its scale and theatricality transformed it into a secular cathedral dedicated to America.

The broader interior schema exhibited organic architecture, where columns, arches, and ceilings blended seamlessly, crafting an immersive environment. This approach reflected principles seen throughout Gaudí’s designs.

One unexpected finding was the exterior’s intended decoration. Gaudí designed the building to be enveloped in trencadís, with colors transitioning from earthy greens at the base to silvers and golds at the top. Coughlin understood this as representing a journey from terrestrial toward the celestial realm.

Gaudí’s Legacy Lives On

Though Hotel Attraction was never realized, Coughlin believes it could have redefined New York’s architectural landscape. The skyscraper would have contrasted with Manhattan’s rigid structures, offering a tapering, organic, and symbolically adorned structure. While its true influence remains unknown, it might have promoted a more expressive high-rise design. Had it existed today, Hotel Attraction would likely remain an iconic New York landmark, alongside the Sagrada Família in Gaudí’s legacy.