GRACE ASSEMBLY OF GOD

Finalist in the World Architecture Festival 2016 - Religion category

Grace Assembly of God is envisioned as a metropolitan church in the heart of the city, drawing people from all around the island. The idea of a central atrium is conceived as the hub of the church, where it draws the people from the street, through a gently sweeping main staircase, through which all worshippers have to traverse through before entering the worship halls.

Inspiration of the atrium is drawn from Petra, the ancient archaeological site in Jordan. A pair of high volume double curved wall faces in stone, rising up high, allowing shafts of light into the floor below create a space of awe of God. Names of God were inscribed on the stone walls to further accentuate this experience as the worshippers’ traverse in and through the building. Just like the old renaissance churches, where the play of light and volume serves to remind the worshippers of God’s presence. This same strategy is brought forward and reinterpreted in the atrium before one enters into the worship halls.

The atrium also serves functionally as a gathering space, where multiple platforms are created for gatherings of different scale and formality. It becomes the nexus of the church community where people of varying communities come to meet and interact.

The clear facade on the two side of the atrium allows calming views of lush landscaping while allowing those from the main road to see the activities of the church. This allows for more interplay between the church and the city.