Detail of the project ed. 2020

REIULF RAM­STAD – CHURCH IN THE CUL­TUR­AL CENTER

Design­er	Reiulf Ram­stad
Loca­tion	Stjørdal, Nord-Trøn­de­lag, Norway
Design Team	Reiulf Ram­stad Arkitekter
Year	2015
Pho­to credits	As stat­ed with­in the file­name of each picture.

Pho­to external

Project descrip­tion

The Cul­tur­al Cen­ter of Stjørdal, Nor­way, is an impor­tant node of the com­mu­ni­ty, both local­ly and in the region. The build­ing is a place for all peo­ple inter­est­ed in cul­ture to explore and devel­op their abil­i­ties and tal­ents. Its facil­i­ties con­sist of a library, a youth cen­ter, the­atre and con­cert halls, cin­e­mas, and venues for dance, music, media, art and oth­er activ­i­ties. It also incor­po­rates a com­mu­ni­ty church with spec­tac­u­lar artwork.

The com­mu­ni­ty church is designed to be an inspir­ing place that pro­vides the vis­i­tors with expe­ri­ences and oppor­tu­ni­ties and con­tribut­ing to a rich cul­tur­al and archi­tec­tur­al expe­ri­ence. The wall behind the altar is an impor­tant and sig­nif­i­cant part of the church space. The art with­in this space serves to visu­al­ize faith, hope and com­mu­ni­ty, and in inter­ac­tion with the archi­tec­ture, a com­mon nar­ra­tive is created.

This art­work con­sists of wood­en laths mea­sur­ing 4,5 meters, which cre­ate a rhyth­mi­cal pat­tern of columns on the wall. The laths accen­tu­ate the ver­ti­cal ori­en­ta­tion and empha­sizes the rhythm cre­at­ed by the win­dows, which togeth­er cre­ate visu­al har­mo­ny in the space. The art­work brings col­ors into the church space. Where two laths meet, new col­ors appear through reflec­tion and blend­ing of col­ors. They cast col­ored shad­ows on the wall and when the sun­light shines on the slats, an intense light appears for a few min­utes, as if the they are lit up from with­in. Chris­t­ian sym­bols have been giv­en their place­ment and col­or based on sym­bol­ic mean­ing and litur­gi­cal func­tion. The art­work lends itself to a vari­ety of asso­ci­a­tions and inter­pre­ta­tions and may sym­bol­ize cer­tain aspects of Chris­t­ian liturgy.

The project is anchored in and inspired by the his­to­ry and cul­ture of its loca­tion. At the same time, the archi­tec­ture con­veys its mod­ern func­tion and the pulse of the time and place.

Illus­tra­tive project report
Down­load report

Pho­to internal

Tech­ni­cal drawings

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