CENTER FOR FAITH AGNOSTICS

The beginnings

While browsing the uni.xyz website for a contest, our attention was especially drawn to the title "FAITH". A temple for agnostics is a concept of an object that we have never encountered before, neither in an architectural history class, nor any other. This topic aroused our curiosity and the willingness to face the challenge.

The challenge we decided to take turned out to be quite a nuisance. Temple for agnostics in Beijing. It sounds quite abstract for people brought up in a Western culture in an almost entirely Catholic country. So we asked ourselves "what should be our point of reference?" Should there be religious symbols in such a facility? Should this place resemble places of worship? How can we unite people of different religions and people identify as atheists?

Concepts

The first idea was to refer directly to the Chinese culture. Especially in view of the country's symbol of power in the form of the remains of the Ming Dynasty Wall. We wanted our facility to express in its form the principles of the ancient practice of space planning - fang shui. Even though it is a fascinating topic, we didn't want to limit ourselves. We knew that this object must be open and understandable to a person from every corner of the Earth. In this way, the grain of the final concept appeared in our heads, or more precisely its motto.

Heart. The heart is in each of us, regardless of religion, culture or skin color. It is the driving force of our lives, being beyond divisions and working without ceasing throughout the duration of human life. It grows and ages with us, and sometimes it even expresses our emotions. Great joy, falling in love, fear and anger are expressed by a specific rhythm of the heartbeat. Moving on, emotion is also a state of mind that is common to all people who have experienced it. Stories about love or the loss of loved ones are universal vicissitudes that can be felt by a person from every corner of the world.

This is where our main intention appears - to create a space beyond divisions, full of openness and simplicity. Our goal was to create a place that does not ask questions, but creates a safe haven where you can look for answers not in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, but in the depths of yourself. Where it is difficult for us to see being distracted by the inhuman number of stimuli with which we are bombarded every day. The project also aims to unite people visiting it, create a supportive community that will find peace, relief, hope and strength thanks to such a facility.

Design

The facility is located in the central part of the park. You can enter it from virtually any side, but each entrance offers a different experience. The greatest interference in the study area was the change in the course of the paths in the park. One of them became an integral part of the temple. After a slight change in its course, it was gradually lowered on opposite sides to be the deepest in the middle of the road. The deepest place is where we decided to place the designed object.

The anatomical shape of the heart was the main inspiration for the building's form. Its complex structure, consisting of chambers and valves, translates into an organic shape and numerous nooks and crannies. The main premise of the project was to create a space that gives a feeling of relaxation, a springboard from everyday life. For this reason, it is designed to arouse curiosity, encourage exploration and finding new spaces.

One of the three spaces, which is below the ground level, can be accessed through the gradually descending, winding paths mentioned above. As you go deeper into the terrain, the visual and auditory stimuli seem to disappear, which allows you to cut yourself off from the hustle and bustle of the city. On the north side, the entrance is inconspicuous, evoking a hint of mystery. On the south side, the entrance is integrated with an openwork element in the form of a vertically positioned half of a cylinder made of wooden lamellas, whose diagonal undercut is the entrance to the designed interior. There are benches and streaks of light breaking through the aforementioned lamellas.

 The other two spaces can be accessed simply, from the ground level. The main space is a specific combination of the materials used, it is the most haptic of all the rooms. In it, you can also find seats that invite you to spend a longer time there, as well as streaks of light. Light in our temple is an element of the sacred. The course of the light is deliberately shaped by architectural elements. The smaller space adjoins the main one and although it has a separate entrance, both spaces are connected by a eyehole through which you can observe what is happening in them.

What is the most important for our idea, as a place beyond divisions, the designed temple is fully accessible to people with disabilities and does not discriminate against anyone.

Materials

Apart from the idea behind the concept and influencing visitors through the designed space, a very important element to achieve the desired effect was the use of specific materials that would make it haptic. Selected materials are wood, stone and glazed plaster. Each of them is perceived completely different, both through touch and its visual layer. Wood evokes a feeling of warmth, coziness, and to the touch it is pleasantly warm and slightly irregular. Stone, in turn, is associated with cold, unshakable durability, and to the touch it reminds us of its severity. Last but not least, glazed plaster, irregular, slippery, glossy. The material, not found in nature, but the effect achieved - the effect of the interior of the shell, which is a shelter for many creatures.

Summary

Creating such a unique project as a temple for agnostics gave us a lot of joy and satisfaction. It was a very educational experience that definitely broadened our horizons in design. We are convinced that places with such a function are needed and should appear in public spaces more and more often. The rush of technological or industrial progress will not cease, and we cannot allow it to obscure what is most important - the feeling of peace and harmony in our everyday lives.