Livegreen Blog

An ethereal, permeable presence. A 9 metre high tower stands out against the horizon, resting on solid cement foundations: a base representing the landscape of the profane and a churchyard representing the divine at the heart of the construction.

From far away it looks like an open structure, an effect created by the arrangement of the wooden strips making up the bell tower, forming geometric effects of light and shadow. But these openings are not seen in the same way from the inside of the church, which is a calm, collected place, an invitation to meditation; an abstract volume which is at the same time intimate and unbounded, where light becomes a truly metaphysical presence, an integral part of the design of the church.

This non-profit project was developed by American students from the Illinois Institute of Technology with the on-site technical assistance of Ecker Architekten.
The timber for the building was donated, and accessory work was performed free by local businesses.

The result is a place of meditation whose simplicity approaches and integrates the construction into the agricultural landscape, picking up on the old tradition of the country chapel.


Design: ITT with Ecker Architekten, http://www.ecker-architekten.de/
Location: Bödigheim, Germany
Year: 2009
Surface area: 3 metres x 9 metres
Photographs: IIT Design Build Studio, Ecker Architekten, John Ruffolo, Robert Piotrowski, Klaus Hilger, Brigida Gonzalez