Detail of the project ed. 2016

com­­mu­ni­­ty-church-knarvik / Reiulf Ram­stad Arkitekter

Design­er  Reiulf Ramstad
Loca­tion  Knarvik, Horda­land, Norway
Design Team  

Reiulf Ram­stad Arkitekter
Year  2014
Pho­to credits  

Hund­ven Clements Photography

Pho­to external

Project descrip­tion

The new Com­mu­ni­ty Church in Knarvik, locat­ed on the scenic westcoast
of Nor­way north of Bergen, is built on a priv­i­leged site overlooking
the cul­tur­al land­scape and local town cen­tre. The build­ing is carefully
adapt­ed to an exist­ing hill­side between built and nat­ur­al environment,
pro­vid­ing the church with an inspir­ing con­text of the sur­round­ing heath
land­scape. Its dis­tinc­tive and inno­v­a­tive char­ac­ter and cen­tral location
makes it a land­mark in the com­mu­ni­ty, to be invit­ing and inclu­sive for
all peo­ple to cul­ti­vate their faith through­out the week.
The church sig­nals its func­tion with a sacral dig­ni­ty and recognisable
form, where the church spire, sanc­tu­ary and chapel are emphasised
by ascend­ing roof planes. Inspired by the local tra­di­tion of Norwegian
stave church­es, the build­ing uti­lizes clear and ele­men­tal geometries,
mate­ri­als and con­struc­tions. The com­pact build­ing vol­ume is split into
two sto­ries on a rec­tan­gu­lar plan, sep­a­rat­ing the sacred spaces above
from the cul­tur­al and admin­is­tra­tive func­tions below. An inter­nal “church
square” con­nects the two lev­els with an atri­um stair into a continuous
space, and may be joined or sep­a­rat­ed from the sanc­tu­ary with sliding
glass walls to accom­mo­date more than 500 people.
Wood is the key mate­r­i­al of the project, expressed in the homogeneous
cladding of pre-weath­­ered pine heart­wood and mir­rored by the
light-coloured pine fin­ish on all inte­ri­or sur­faces. The build­ing permits
day­light into its vol­ume through lancet-rem­i­nis­­cent tall and nar­row windows,
splayed in plan to max­imise admit­tance and reduce glare. At
night, the warm glow of the inte­ri­or reveals the activ­i­ties of its religious
and cul­tur­al events.
The church aspires to pro­vide a plat­form for a safe upbring­ing for
chil­dren and youth, to become a local venue for gath­er­ings and faith,
and to facil­i­tate art, music and cul­tur­al development.

Illus­tra­tive project report
Down­load report

Pho­to internal

Tech­ni­cal drawings

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