© Fabrice Fouillet
Constructing places of worship has always been an intricate practice, managing to detach the human, and release the boundary between body, mind, and spirit. Holy presence has been crucial in designing and constructing sacred places, which is why almost all religious building possessed similar characteristics: grandiosity, monolithic material, natural elements, and a plan that compliments an individual’s circulation through the space. Contemporary religious structures, however, found a way to adapt to the evolution of architecture. Unlike the Gothic or Baroque periods, modern-day architecture does not have a dominant identity. It is, in fact, a combination of postmodernism, futurism, minimalism, and everything in between. Architects have found a way to transform these exclusive, religion-devoted places into structures of spirituality, manifestation, and fascination.
Here is a selection of contemporary religious buildings that prove once again that architects are breaking all boundaries of creativity.
The San Josemaría Escrivá Church
© Fran Parente
Bosjes Chapel
© Adam Letch
Rippon Chapel
Courtesy of Kojii Fuji / Nacasa & Partners Inc.
KAPSARC Masjid
© Abdulrahman Alolyan
Mohammad Rasul-Allah Mosque
© Ahmad Mirzaee
Chapel in Valleaceron
Courtesy of S.M.A.O
Sunset Chapel
© Esteban Suarez
Reading Between the Lines
© Filip Dujardin
Sancaklar Mosque
Courtesy of EAA Emre Arolat Architects
Wotruba Church
© Denis Esacov
Parish Church
© Vicens & Ramos
Temple in Stone and Light
© Akash Kumar Das
Oasis – Pastoral Care Voestalpine
© David Schreyer
Bahai Temple
Courtesy of Asamblea Espiritual Nacional de los Bah'Ìs de Chile + Hariri Pontarini Architects
Lotus Temple
Courtesy of Futo Tussauds
Agri Chapel
© Yousuke Harigane
Suzhou Chapel
© Pedro Pegenaute
Pilgrimage Church
© Laurian Ghinitoiu
Poland’s Anti-Communism “Solidarity” Churches
Cathedral of Northern Lights
© Adam Mork
Thorncrown Chapel
© Randall Connaughton
Temporary Chapel for the Deaconesses of St. Loup
© Milo Keller
Chapel of Reconciliation
Courtesy of Wikimedia User Ansgar Koreng / CC BY 3.0 (DE)