Finnish architects Anssi Lassila and Teemu Hirvilammi of Lassila Hirvilammi with Jani Jansson of Luonti have completed this slate-clad church with a separate steeple in Jyväskylä, Finland.
Called Kuokkala Church, the project has a laminated wood structure and the interior is finished with spruce, ash and lime wood.
The church is adjacent to a market square and has a wide granite stairway to lead visitors into the main entrance.
The main floor consists of a youth centre, offices and the main hall overlooked by a gallery housing the organ and musical director’s office.
Here's some more from the architects:
Kuokkala Church
The wish of the Parish of Jyväskylä was to build “a church that looks like a church”.
Our proposal was a simple, sculptural form within which all of the church’s different functions could be contained.
The design is “of our time”, yet permeated with nods to and re-interpretations of church-building tradition.
The east-west oriented building stands centrally on Kuokkala Square, the focal point of Jyväskylä’s Kuokkala district.
The church is roofed and clad in overlapping slate tiles, and wooden and copper details around the entrances supplement the overall visual aspect.
The church is flanked by a granite stairway and walls which, together with the bell tower on the square, usher visitors towards the main entrance.
The church’s functions are located across three storeys, with the church offices opening directly onto the market square.
On the main floor, the church hall and parish meeting hall can be combined to create a shared space onto which the floor’s children’s and youth facilities also adjoin.
A gallery houses the organ and cantors' office.
The church is predominantly wooden.
The church ceiling is a combined glulam frame and wooden gridshell construction, which visually integrates the separate hall spaces.
The gridshell was assembled and laminated together in-situ in three sections.
Locally sourced spruce has been used throughout the church, from its bearing structures to its interior surfaces and fixtures.
The church hall furnishings are in ashwood and the altar furniture is limewood, a species used historically for the carving of wooden icons.
The church is adjacent to the market square and has a wide granite stairway to lead visitors into the main entrance.
The three-storey building has two meeting halls, a youth centre and offices on the ground floor, which are overlooked by a gallery housing the organ and musical director’s office.
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The church is supported on a Glulam frame finished with a spruce lattice, and has lime wood altar furniture and ash wood furnishings.
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The church design is based on the winning entry of a 2006 invitational architectural competition.
Design period: 2006–2010
Construction: 2008–2010
Floor area: 1311 m2, 7460 m3
See also:
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| Dove of Peace by Sunlay Design |
Catholic Church by DOS Architects |
Dezeen’s top ten: churches |
that's what i call architecture!!
@salvo —200% agreed..context-wise, the usage of material-slate shingles, the interior- very light in both aesthetic and in space… very appealing..I want to go here every services…wish i can..
This is a really nice project. Does the lattice pattern have a real function in the building or is it extraneous? It looks nice so I guess it does not matter so much. Regardless the section is an absolutely beautiful take on aalto.
That bell tower just gives me an idea for my next skyscraper project! Nice!
Brilliant. Finally a design worth savoring.
great architecture … the wood makes it so warm … love it!
Beautiful real "grown up" architecture – form, materials, tectonic expression – non of that blob crap.
The inside surprised me because I expected something angular.
But anyway, it's very good looking. Especially in the snow.
Brilliant!
Amazing piece of architecture, the inside is truly stunning and real contrast to the dark heavy outer skin.
It's a handsome edifice in the old style with a rich palette of materials though I question the lattice work inner shell. Ingenious but too busy for me.
Spot on Andy! A really well considered and articulate piece of contemporary architecture that brings hope for the future of the profession.
superbe, bravo. Tout un travail de réflexion.
Go Suomi!
Another touch of Finsky magic
Olet söpö!!
simply beatiful!!
best I have seen for a while
Keep loving those finnish wood design…Keep them coming…
Are the bells in the tower hand-played from a chime stand or carillon keyboard? It'd be a pity to have another magnificent tower and musical instrument just played by computer.
One of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. I love the way the light comes in above the altar, the latticed ceiling, the all wood interior. Absolutely heavenly!
Well done.
"Finnish"
one word that describes the approach to design.
Reminds me of Pyhän Henrikin ekumeeninen taidekappeli in Turku and Wooden church of Kärsämäki.
The same architect (Anssi Lassila) as the Kärsämäki Church…