RichardMeiersRomechurchisoneevent

originallyplannedto mark thecelebrations

of theJubileeof AD 2000. Thiswasinitiated
bythePopein1994whenhecalledfor a
Special Consistoryto preparefor theGreat
Jubileeat thestartingpoint of thethird
millenniuminvolvingtheCatholicworldasa
whole. Meiersproject isthe50thchurchto
beinauguratedintheVaticansMillennium
Project. Eachchurchhasacommunitycentre
andtheyarebuilt invariousparishdistricts
throughout Rome.
TheJubileeChurchcommissionwasthe
result of aninternational competition, and
theVaticansshortlist includedMeier, Gehry,
Behnisch, Calatrava, EisenmanandAndo.
Theawardof theproject to Meier was
controversial fromtheoutset, inthat Meier
asaJew wouldbeworkingwiththeforemost
Catholicclient theVaticanitself. However,
therelationshipandtheresultant complex
areatriumphof thiscollaboration, and
entirelysuccessful inarchitectureof
outstandingoptimism.
Thechurch, namedDio Padre
Misericordioso (Godour Merciful Father) by
PopeJohnPaul II, wasconsecratedand
inauguratedon26October 2003byCardinal
Camillo Ruini inafour-hour serviceof
celebration, musicandritual. Thiswas
attendedbyahugecongregationbothwithin
thechurchitself andexternallyonthe
churchpiazza.
Thechurchisinanordinary1970s
10-storeyhousingquarter at Tor TreTeste,
asuburbat somedistancefromthecentreof
thecity. Takentogether, churchand
communitycentreformaspectacular new
focusinanotherwiselow-keysuburban
environment, anddefinebothareligious
precinct andahearteningsenseof place.
Meier hassaidthat expressionof
aspiration, hopeandbelief, aswell as
opennessandtransparencyareall aspectsof
theideasbehindthedesignof thischurch. It
isawonderful gift to thewholecommunity
of morethan25000people.
Thefan-shapedsiteisapproacheddirectly
fromtheeast acrossatravertinepaved
entrancepiazza(sagrato), whichextendsasa
baseto thechurchonthesouthandwest of
theprecinct. Theentranceismarkedby
several external featuresincludingasilver
cross, andacampanilewithexposedbells
thetower markingout boththechurchto
thesouthandthecommunitycentreto the
north. Thegenerousentrancehall, defined
byatravertinescreenwall, ispartlyenclosed
withinbyaraisedorganloft. Onceinthe
nave, themainaltar isimmediatelyvisibleat
thewest end. Althoughunconventional, this
positionisalogical result of thefrontal
easternentrance.
Plan-formandsectionareextremelyclear.
Threecirclesof equal radiuscreatethree
concreteshellsto thesouthandtogether
withathick spinewall to thenorth, themain
spaceof thechurchnaveiscontained. Ina
contrasting, plainL planaroundasunken
courtyard, isthecommunitycentre, onfour
levels. Thecentreisseparatedfromthemain
churchbyalinear top-lit atrium.
Theplanof thechurchisessentially
traditional withnave, altar, sidechapel and
confessional booths. Introductionof the
threeshellstransformstheproject and
impliestheHolyTrinity. Natural light isthe
major theme, withskylightsbetweeneach
shell andover themainspace, creatingever
changingpatternswithin. Meier hasreferred
to thisas aluminousspatial experience
theraysof sunlight serveasamystic
metaphor of thepresenceof God.
Curvinginbothplanandinsection, the
threeshell wall planesarethereal tour de
forceinthewholeproject. Theyare
sweepingvertical cantileversformedwith
panelsof beautiful whiteconcretewitha
finishso finethat it resemblesmarble.
Meiersdescriptionof theengineering
effort involvedinerectingtheshellsas
48|4 49|4
CHURCH, ROME, ITALY
A RC H ITEC T
RICHARD MEIER
INSTRUMENT OF LIGHT
Richard Meierslongawaited church in Rome is
a beautifully honed giver and receiver of light.
siteplan
1
Inanondescript suburbof Rome, the
churchisaglowingbeaconcomposed
of overlapping, shell-likeforms.
2
Maineast entrance. Theconcrete
shellsareanchoredbyaspinewall.
1
2
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51|4 50|4 basement
crosssection
1 m eeting room
2 courtyard
3 com m unity centre
4 m ain (east) entrance
5 cam panile
6 nave
7 altar
8 side chapel
9 confessionals
10 organ loft
11 priests offices
12 pastoralresidence
13 kitchen
14 bedroom s
groundfloor plan(scaleapprox1:500)
first floor
longitudinal section
secondfloor
3
Thecalm, luminousinterior. The
limitedpaletteof materials(white
concrete, travertineandtimber) and
studiedabsenceof ornamentation
enhancestheair of serenity. 3
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52|4 53|4
Herculean, underlinesthetask involved
intheachievement of thecantilevers.
(Theyareprefabricatedpost-tensioned
concretepanels.)
Thethreeshells, or arcs, formamassive
instrument of light themost monumental
gestureof Meierswholerepertoire and
embodythesacredspaceat theheart of the
church. Incontemplatingthedesign, Meier
hasreferredto bothLeCorbusier at
Ronchampandespeciallyto Aalto andthe
Churchof theThreeCrossesinFinland.
Aaltoschurchat Riola, near Bologna, came
to mindinvisitingtheJubileeChurch.
Theinterior spaceandmaterialityof the
mainnaveandside-chapel aresereneand
beautifullycrafted. Thelimitedrangeof
materials travertine, whiteconcreteand
light wood predominatesandthereis
currentlyanabsenceof anydecoration. The
whiteconcreteshellscontrast withthe
travertineandslattedwoodof thespinewall;
otherwisethenaveisoccupiedonlybythe
simplerangesof woodenpews. Thewhite
stucco organloft withitssilver clustersof
pipes, andthesculptedwhitealtar, form
counterpointsat thetwo ends.
Thealtar plinthsandfurnitureareall
formedinthesametravertineasthenave
floor. Eachelement of thefurnitureis
exemplary, andsomeitemssuchasthe
casket for communionwafers(agoldbox in
thesidechapel) arequiteexquisite. Theonly
concessionto traditionisanineteenth-
centurycrossabovethemainaltar.
At night, thewholechurchisagiver of
light to theouter worldandagainthethree
shells, andthetransparent endsof the
church, giveaspectacular signal of asacred
entitywithinthecommunity.
Thecommunitycentrehasitsmain
approachfromtheeasternchurchsagrato
throughthecentral linear atrium. Secondary
entrancesareprovidedfromtwo courtyards.
Thebasement holdsthemajor meetinghall
(Saledi Riunione) adjacent to thesunken
courtyard. Bothcourtsareintendedfor
stagingcommunityeventsassociatedwith
thechurch.
Upper levelsincludetheparishpriests
officesandcatechismrooms. Thesecond
floor housesthepastorsresidenceandthe
kitchen. Theresidenceincorporatesa
splendidlivingroomwitharaisedceilingand
toplight, andincludesabrick hearthand
fireplace. It hasfineviewsof theparish:
housingandthecommunityat large.
Thewesternhalf of thesiteincludes
discreetlyplacedparkingandalandscaped
area, withinrisingwalledground, planted
witholivetrees. Thewholeof thesecular
precinct andthecommunitycentreisin
whitestucco, withthenorthelevation
enlivenedbybalconies. Theminimal nature
of thecentreisanappropriatecontrast to
theexuberanceof themainchurch.
AlthoughthisisMeiersfirst church, the
parti of theplanandsectionareunique
withinhiswork, andthebeautiful white
precast concretewallsof theshellsa
resoundingsuccessintheuseof materials
andstructure. Thischurchistrulypart of the
twenty-first century anew landmark and
placeof pilgrimagefor thefaithful.
IVORRICHARDS
Architect
Richard Meier &Partners, NewYork
Structural engineers
Ove Arup and Partners, Italcementi
Mechanical engineers
Ove Arup and Partners, Luigi DellAquila
Lightingconsultants
FMRS, Erco
Photographs
Edmund Sumner/VIEW
CHURCH, ROME, ITALY
A RC H ITEC T
RICHARD MEIER
4
Detail of organloft.
5
Bothliterallyandmetaphorically,
thechurchisagiver andreceiver
of light.
originof plangeometry axonometric projection
4
5
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