Hamburg, Germany – Angular, asymmetrical, colorful and just plain extraordinary, there are modern churches that will have one looking in vain for a traditional steeple. All around the world, architects are designing ever more eye-catching houses of worship – chapels and synagogues whose shapes and colors will be impressing visitors long after the upcoming holiday season has passed. Emporis, the international provider of building information, has now compiled a selection of the world's most spectacular churches, as summarized in the table below:
One of the most recent examples, the Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue) in the German city of Mainz, is reminiscent at first sight of building blocks in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, piled on top of one another and interspersed by slanting triangular and rectangular windows. In actual fact, this Jewish place of worship, completed in 2010, is intended to represent an outsized version of the Hebrew word Kedushah, meaning blessing. The architects of Iglesia Parroquial en Rivas Vaciamadrid in Madrid, Vicens + Ramos, also make strong use of corners and edges, with finger-like protuberances projecting like truncated pyramids out of the north side of the church. The building is also notable for its rust- colored facade, which sets it apart from other churches in terms of color.
With fewer angles, but all the more rotund instead, are the Cathe?drale de la Re?surrection in E?vry, France, and the Leaf Chapel in Hokuto, Japan. The former catches the attention with its circular footprint and the trees ringing its steep rooftop like a crown. The Leaf Chapel, on the other hand, is reminiscent of a cupola nestling against a slope. Its two-part shape consists of a glass half that is stationary and a second half made of steel that can be pushed up over the other. In favorable weather conditions, the indoor chapel can quickly be made into a location for an open-air wedding.
A harmonious combination of rectangular and round elements is displayed by the Jubilee Church in Rome, Italy. While the right-hand half is composed of rectangular blocks that house the various rooms and a bell tower, the left-hand side is characterized by three semi-circular layers that grow smaller as you move outward, and which lean over the other parts of the building like a cocoon. Especially for the "Eternal City" Rome with its countless Christian churches from two millennia of history, this asymmetrical house of worship does not just represent a feat of daring, but also a singular architectural highlight.
Wherever one looks, church architecture is undergoing a process of upheaval. Outstanding designs are making modern houses of worship stylish works of art. Whether this modernization of the appearance will benefit the image of church as an institution and lead to more people attending services, will remain to be seen. One thing, however, is already certain: These ten spectacular churches are unique architectural masterpieces.
1. Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida
Brasília, Brazil; Oscar Niemeyer, Architect
2. Cathédrale de la Résurrection
Évry, France; Mario Botta Architetto, architect
3. Chapel of the Holy Cross
Sedona, Arizona, U.S.; Anshen + Allen, architect
4. Hallgrímskirkja
Reykjavík, Iceland; Guðjón Samúelsson, architect
5. Iglesia Parroquial en Rivas Vaciamadrid
Madrid, Spain; Vicens + Ramos, architect
6. Jubilee Church
Rome, Italy; Richard Meier & Partners
7. Leaf Chapel
Hokuto, Japan; Klein Dythim architecture, architect
8. Neue Synagoge Mainz
Mainz, Germany; Manuel Herz Architects
9. Temppeliaukio Church
Helsinki, Finland; Timo & Tuomo Suomalainen, architects
10. U.S. Air Force Cadet Academy Chapel
Colorado Springs, Colorado; SOM, architect
About Emporis
Emporis is a leading database of information about building and construction projects, based in Germany. For over a decade Emporis has helped companies, organizations and individuals stay informed about the building industry. The Emporis Skyscraper Award is the world’s most renowned prize for high-rise architecture.
Related Stories
| Oct 4, 2022
Rental property owners want access to utility usage data for whole properties
As pressure from investors for ESG reporting mounts, owners of multifamily properties increasingly look to collect whole-building utility usage data.
| Oct 4, 2022
In dire need of affordable housing, Aspen, Colo. will get a development that provides 277 affordable homes
A few miles from downtown Aspen, Colo., a development will provide 277 new affordable homes for an area experiencing a dire affordable housing crisis.
Green | Oct 3, 2022
California regulators move to ban gas heaters for existing buildings
California regulators voted unanimously recently on a series of measures that include a ban on the sale of natural gas-powered heating and hot water systems beginning in 2030.
Resiliency | Sep 30, 2022
Designing buildings for wildfire defensibility
Wold Architects and Engineers' Senior Planner Ryan Downs, AIA, talks about how to make structures and communities more fire-resistant.
| Sep 30, 2022
Manley Spangler Smith Architects partners with PBK in strategic merger
Manley Spangler Smith Architects (MSSA), a Georgia-based, full-service architectural firm specializing in educational and municipal facilities, announced today a significant development aimed at increasing its capabilities, expertise, and suite of services.
| Sep 30, 2022
Lab-grown bricks offer potential low-carbon building material
A team of students at the University of Waterloo in Canada have developed a process to grow bricks using bacteria.
| Sep 29, 2022
FitzGerald establishes Denver office
The new location bolsters FitzGerald’s nationwide reach and capitalizes on local expertise and boots-on-the-ground to serve new and existing clients seeking to do business in Denver and the Front Range, as well as the Southwest United States, California, and Texas.
| Sep 28, 2022
New digital platform to foster construction supply chains free of forced labor
Design for Freedom by Grace Farms and the U.S. Coalition on Sustainability formed a partnership to advance shared goals regarding sustainable and ethical building material supply chains that are free of forced labor.
| Sep 27, 2022
New Buildings Institute released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code
New Buildings Institute (NBI) has released the Existing Building Decarbonization Code.
| Sep 23, 2022
High projected demand for new housing prompts debate on best climate-friendly materials
The number of people living in cities could increase to 80% of the total population by 2100. That could require more new construction between now and 2050 than all the construction done since the start of the industrial revolution.