주변을 둘러싼 산으로 극적인 형태를 취하고 있는 신시가지의 중심에 멕시코의 다각형을 한 교회가 섰다.
종교의식과 다양한 행사가 이루어질 이 거대한 공간감을 한 교회는 영적인 건축을 긴 건축학적 나레이션으로 소통할 공간이라고 할 수 있는데, 입구의 캐노피 위쪽면은 납작한 큰 벽을 하고 있는데 별다른 장식 없이 교회 내부의 신성한 공간인 안쪽과 그 이상의 공간을 한정하고 있다.
in the city of monterrey, mexico, architectural design firm moneo brock has constructed an almost polygonal church that arches into the sky in a number of crystalline protrusions. the church, called ‘el señor de la misericordia’, sits at the center of a new urban development in the city, and is dramatically framed by the mountains of the surrounding landscape.
in its design, moneo brock aimed to create a volume that would go beyond the religious rituals and liturgical events generally practiced in monterrey, creating spaces within the temple in communion with and representative of the long architectural narrative of spiritual constructs. the various interconnected bodies that make up the exterior are inspired by and give the impression of traditional religious architecture, but are simultaneously unquestionably modern. despite its segmented, sheared exterior, the structure is classical in function and presents a reinterpreted vision of a bell tower, stained glass windows, baptistry, chapel and lateral courtyard.
above the entry canopy, the façade is a large flat wall without embellishment or decoration, declarative of the otherness of the space behind and within: the sacred space of the church interior. the church is intended to serve as a multifunctional, expandable environment, capable of extending out onto the surrounding plaza when an event draws a crowd that exceeds its 350 person capacity. the large, flat faces of the design are intended to be reminiscent of the first missions built by friar junipero throughout the american southwest, constructed of wood and adobe.
the interior design is fully integrated with the architecture, with moneo brock furnishings throughout: from the wood benches to the altar, the choir and the multiple screens, the sliding doors at the entry, the doors to the main sanctuary and the screen that separates the baptistery from the central nave. light enters this nave from a number of apertures. the three chapels are all punctuated by a generous skylight, each one facing a different cardinal direction accommodating the gradual shift of light within the space over the day. above the baptistry, the designer’s reimagining of a rose window opens to the west, with stained glass filtering colored light into the building, most notably during evening mass. in what is one of the church’s most eye-catching eccentricities, a fourth skylight above the altar directs sunlight through an inclined panel, shaping the light into a vast glowing cross and casting it onto the rear wall of the church.
from designboom