| Works
Chapel
of St. Ignatius
Notre-Dame-du-Haut
Church
of the Light
All
Saints Margaret Street
Tokyo
Church of Christ
|
Sacred
Procession
Whereas urban churches
have the underlying requirement of carving out a sacred space in the midst
of the chaotic, profane city, the hill at Ronchamp is a sacred location
already delineated by topography. Its commanding site enables the
church to call out to the surrounding countryside, its sweeping white forms
visible for miles around. The transition from the profane to the
sacred starts when one sees the church from below and begins the climb
uphill. The physical effort required focusses the mind of the pilgrim
on the destination, placing him in the mindset of the sacred world.
Light
The interior of Notre-Dame-du-
Haut is an essay in the expressive use of light. The overall effect
is wondrous and awe-inspiring, de-picting the greatness of God in a non-objective
way. The main source of interior light is the south wall, which contains
small aper- tures splayed to the inside. These directed rays of light
focus the attention of the worshipper on the altar and the liturgical proceedings
during Mass. Light also constantly bathes the wooden statue of the
Virgin Mary in its niche, giving it an otherworldly glow from the darkened
interior. Most dramatic is the tiny slit of light between the top
of the wall and the roof. The ‘hovering’ effect of the roof
seems almost magical and heightens the drama of its curvilinear shape.
 In
the church, lighting effects are combined with the use of colour.
Le Corbusier wrote that “in order to truly perceive white, carefully ordered
polychrome forms must also be present”. This could also be said of
Steven Holl’s Chapel of St. Ignatius. In Notre-Dame-du-Haut, the
south wall apertures cast coloured rays of light into the white church
using brightly coloured glass. The statue niche is painted red, yellow
and green to give it further emphasis against the monochrome background.
Conclusion
Notre-Dame-du-Haut has many of the characteristics
of a modern church. It rejects traditional decorative elements like
paintings and sculptures of biblical stories and figures in favour
of more abstract symbols of religion. Light and colour infuse the
spartan white interior with liveliness, in some ways bringing the Holy
Spirit into the church. The forms of the building are also non-traditional,
but are derived from qualities intrinsic to Christianity. The curve
of the entrance elevation expresses the church’s welcoming arms, embracing
all that approach. It is also a maternal gesture, coming from the
Virgin Mary, the patron saint of the church. |