Transcendental Architecture
Contemporary Places of Worship
Transcendental Architecture – Contemporary Places of Worship _ Anna Roos
Coming Home _ Jaap Dawson
– The Votive Chapel _ Mario Filippetto Architetto
– Skorba Village Centre _ ENOTA
– Our Lady of Fatima Chapel _ Plano Humano Arquitectos
– Waterside Buddist Shrine _ Archstudio
– Wirmboden Alpine Chapel _ Innauer-Matt Architekten
– Saint Elie Church _ Maroun Lahoud Architecte
– Chapel of Equilibrium _ Álvaro Siza + Carlos Castanheira
– Bahá’í Temple of South America _ Hariri Pontarini Architects
– Belarusian Memorial Chapel _ Spheron Architects
– St. Wenceslas Church _ Atelier Šteˇpán
– Agri Chapel _ Yu Momoeda Architecture Office
– Suzhou Chapel _ Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
– Amir Shakib Arslan Mosque _ L.E.FT Architects
– Don Bosco Church in Maribor _ Dans Arhitekti
– Bishop Selwyn Chapel _ Fearon Hay Architects
– Msheireb Mosque _ John McAslan + Partners
– Paulinum, Leipzig University _ Design Erick van Egeraat
Transcendental Architecture
Contemporary Places of Worship
Transcendental Architecture – Contemporary Places of Worship _ Anna Roos
What makes a place of worship, a place of worship? How do architects create buildings that foster reverence, contemplation, and union with God? When the function of a building is concerned with subliminal matters of faith and transcendence, how on earth do architects achieve this ethereal task? How can architecture nurture emotional absorption rather than distant observation?
Inherent in the brief for a place of worship is the demand to create a powerful, transcendental experience for the user, a place of refuge and peace. This ephemeral demand requires sensibility and creative genius of the architect. Places of worship are complex and mysterious, you can’t measure atmosphere and you can’t quantify feelings. This makes the task of the architect more demanding, but also more intriguing.
This essay will analyze the elements architects have at their disposal to conjure transcendental places where worshippers can go and spend time communing with God, whether Jesus Christ, Allah, or Buddha. How have the architects modeled space, light, landscape, and materials to create sanctuaries conducive to contemplation and prayer? How is architecture used symbolically, whether a church in Lebanon or an alpine chapel in Austria, a temple in Chile or a Buddhist shrine in China, an Islamic mosque in Qatar, or a scouts’ chapel in Portugal? How do architects raise earthly elements to mystical heights? These complex questions pose an alluring challenge.
Transcendental Architecture
Contemporary Places of Worship
Transcendental Architecture – Contemporary Places of Worship _ Anna Roos
What makes a place of worship, a place of worship? How do architects create buildings that foster reverence, contemplation, and union with God? When the function of a building is concerned with subliminal matters of faith and transcendence, how on earth do architects achieve this ethereal task? How can architecture nurture emotional absorption rather than distant observation?
Inherent in the brief for a place of worship is the demand to create a powerful, transcendental experience for the user, a place of refuge and peace. This ephemeral demand requires sensibility and creative genius of the architect. Places of worship are complex and mysterious, you can’t measure atmosphere and you can’t quantify feelings. This makes the task of the architect more demanding, but also more intriguing.
This essay will analyze the elements architects have at their disposal to conjure transcendental places where worshippers can go and spend time communing with God, whether Jesus Christ, Allah, or Buddha. How have the architects modeled space, light, landscape, and materials to create sanctuaries conducive to contemplation and prayer? How is architecture used symbolically, whether a church in Lebanon or an alpine chapel in Austria, a temple in Chile or a Buddhist shrine in China, an Islamic mosque in Qatar, or a scouts’ chapel in Portugal? How do architects raise earthly elements to mystical heights? These complex questions pose an alluring challenge.
