Re-Conception of the Church: The Metaphysical Womb of Space

Abstract

“The quality of architecture does not lie in the sense of reality that it expresses, but quite the reverse, in its capacity for awakening our imagination.” - Juhani Pallasmaa Architecture is a multi-sensory experience that draws upon the physical, emotional and intellectual elements of our being. It is made of physical materials, but it has the potential to induce metaphysical experiences beyond the physical; producing thoughts, memories, emotions and dreams beyond tangible reality. When these feelings are evoked in architecture, especially for spaces of religious, sacred, liturgical purposes, one can experience a heightened sense of spirituality. However, in the 21st century, much church design has become media driven as an aesthetic object mainly concerned with formal aesthetic values and programmatic matters, while ignoring the cultural context and the profound sensory dimension of a religious space. Through the investigation of theories informed by Peter Zumthor, Juhani Pallasmaa, and Steven Holl, it is argued that design rooted in the sensuous experience of architecture, integrated to the specific context and surroundings, solidly evokes a genuine connection of being and spirituality. The thesis seeks to enhance the design of a church through the concept of metaphysical experience, whilst acknowledging the original practice of the early church as described in the New Testament of The Holy Bible. The design will focus on the development of a church building for the Evangelical Formosan Church of Central Auckland. The church currently hold worship services in a hired hall, as they do not have their own church building. However they own a 976 meter-squared site situated at the intersection of Dominion Road and Balmoral Road, and they are looking to transform the existing site into a worship space of their own. The proposed design of this thesis is to investigate a model that makes a contribution to liturgical architecture through a deliberate translation of my findings into a design strategy.