A forgotten skyscraper for New York: Antoni Gaudí's project "comes to life" after 118 years

More than a century after the great Antoni Gaudí conceived one of his most grand, yet never realized projects—a fantastic skyscraper in New York known as "Hotel Attraction"—the building has finally "appeared" in Manhattan. Belgian artist and photographer Thierry Leshanter has recreated the legendary tower using neural networks.

These unique Art Nouveau-style images allow us to see what the New York skyline would look like if a creation by the author of the Sagrada Família had risen there at the beginning of the 20th century. In an interview with Newsweek, Leshanter himself called the project "one of the greatest architectural 'what ifs' in history."

The surge of interest in Gaudí's forgotten legacy coincides with the centennial anniversary of the architect's death (June 10, 1926), as well as long-awaited progress on his main masterpiece—the Sagrada Família in Barcelona. In February, construction workers installed the cross-shaped finial atop the central Tower of Jesus Christ. The tallest cathedral in the world is expected to be fully completed within the next decade.

Reviving a "lost" masterpiece

Thierry Leshanter, who has an extensive background in photography and graphic design, admitted that he has always had a soft spot for Art Nouveau. "For thirty years, I have photographed buildings that exist in reality. Gaudí's project gave me the chance to 'photograph' something that never was," the artist shared. "AI allowed me not to reinvent something, but to reconstruct a plausible memory of what the world almost had. To give this tower light, weather, and a physical presence on the streets of New York, as if it had always stood there."

According to Leshanter, if Hotel Attraction had been built, it could have completely altered the architectural evolution of American skyscrapers:

• A farewell to right angles: New York ultimately became a "cathedral of right angles, geometry, and repetition." Gaudí, on the other hand, proposed a living, breathing structure based on parabolas and catenary curves.

• Architecture of the future: Gaudí's project was decades ahead of its time, anticipating organic architecture, fluid forms, and a concept where the emotion elicited by a space is more important than its pure function.

AI in modern architecture: A tool, not a replacement

Leshanter's project comes at a time when artificial intelligence is embedding itself deeper into the architectural community.

According to a study by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), specialists view AI optimistically as a tool to automate routine tasks and assist with research. At the same time, about 90% of professionals remain concerned about accuracy, data security, and the authenticity of AI generations.

Nevertheless, a report from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) shows rapid growth: the share of architectural firms utilizing AI has risen to 59%. Experts agree that neural networks only expand the capabilities of architects but are incapable of replacing human genius. The main drivers of this technological wave are young professionals under the age of 35.

"This is not nostalgia for the past; it is nostalgia for a future that remained forever locked inside the imagination of a genius," Leshanter concludes. "Through AI, I wanted to make this forgotten future visible, if only for a moment."