iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Church-Cover-001

Álvaro Siza Designs A White-Concrete Modernist Church

Scroll
Name
Project
Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande
Images
João Morgado
Words

Famed Portuguese architect, Álvaro Siza Vieira, has designed a modernist church whose poetic, sculptural form folds gently into the surrounding neighborhood in Rennes.

Situated on the outskirts of Rennes, the church of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande is the first to have been built in Brittany in the 21st century. The occasion was marked by contracting the project to 84-year-old Pritzker Prize winner, Álvaro Siza Vieira. Siza’s use of light, white concrete provides a unique ceremonial space that blends with the suburban landscape despite its size. Split across two levels, the modernist building offers a series of thoughtfully designed spaces. The lower story, with its white marble walls, houses the parish committee and has sufficient room for community activities. The upper story of the cylindrical volume houses the spacious church hall, able to accommodate up to 120 people. A square panel is suspended above this circular space, allowing a diffused glow to wash over the room via a cleverly structured lighting system. 

iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-027
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-001
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-018
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-023
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-025
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-024
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-004
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-010
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-021
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Siza-Brittany-Church-022
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-009
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-005
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-014
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-011
iGNANT-Architecture-Alvaro-Siza-Brittany-Church-003

All images © João Morgado

Subscribe To Our Newsletter
SIGN UP