Final Chapel + Progression from Mid-Review

My final chapel design and plan are I must say, very different from my original designs. Not only are they oriented in different directions, but they also have different roofs, walls, and circulation paths.

For example, here is a picture of my chapel from the mid review...And now...my final chapel:

While yes, they definitely look very different from each other, I realize that much of my final design is indeed rooted in the original. It is great to see how things such as my plan and rooflines that weren't working out as well as I would have liked, have evolved to function much more successfully and in a way that I am really happy about.

One of my biggest changes between the two designs was reorienting the direction of the chapel, which in effect changed the circulation of my plan. I also primarily drew my inspiration from Tadao Ando, but in the end, decided that it was Mario Botta that I really liked.

Despite these redesigns and shifts in inspiration, my primary goal remained the same, and that was to to create some sort of spiritual journey for visitors to the site. From an outer perspective, I wanted foremost, the chapel to stand out, but to do so in a way that complemented and worked in conjunction with the rest of the plan.

After realizing that I did not like the rectangular shape I had originally chosen for my chapel, I focused on using simple geometries of squares for the entirety of my plan. The largest square was that used for my chapel and then every other element of my program was either square or a variation of the square by cutting through its right angles to create areas defined by 45 degree angles instead.

Although these geometries were some of my guiding principles in designing, my ultimate guiding inspiration was Mario Botta and the way in which he often creates depths in ceilings by combining several panels in certain angles. I decided this is what I wanted to do for the roof design of my chapel so designed a fusion of several similar Botta works that I liked and then decided on something that carried this basic shape of implementing 5 panels of various widths on a downwards slope towards the ocean. Here is a photo of my mock-up study-model:

I really wanted the form of these panels to create depth within the chapel as well to provide a really interesting exterior look. To emphasize their strong shape, I first, decided to distinguish each panel from the other by building them in different materials. After deciding that my chapel walls would be built in concrete (or for our purposes, white matboard..), I chose to contrast this with a primarily wooden and glass roof.

To even further emphasize its shape, and inspired by some of Botta's designs, I chose to layer my two outer glass panels with wooden beams that matched the the roof's central wooden panel. I was really excited about the expressive lighting potential created by this shape and hoped that the beams would help to filter the light in interesting directions.

In conjunction with this roof shape, I designed an interior altarpiece that fit within the panels (as seen from the above photo) and then used this same shape to form a reflective pond I placed at the end of my long circulation route. In this way, I wanted to carry even the most expressive and dramatic aspects of my chapel itself into other elements of my design.

(back view of reflective pond & sculptural element)

In order to even further emphasize this strong roof shape as well as to ensure that my chapel itself was connected to the rest of my plan, I mirrored the symmetry of the outer panels in the way in which my side chapel and office mirror each other around the axis of this long corridor. Each of their roofs is then slanted outwards so as to mirror the angle of the chapel's roof panels.

Circulation wise, I again, wanted visitors to the site to have a specific journey. Upon entering the site, one first enters the colonnaded courtyard and has a view down the central colonnaded circulation path into the zen courtyard facing the trees. I really liked the fact that these courtyards mirrored each other, and yet, each would carry a completely different vibe and represent a distinct part of one's visit to the site. The colonnade was used as a way to draw people from one area to the other in a way that created a more interesting circulation experience. I also thought they were a nice vertical contrast of the slanted wooden roof beams.

From this entrance courtyard, one has three options: 1) enter the office area and bathrooms via the door on the right, 2) walk down the colonnade into the zen courtyard, or 3) enter the chapel through the large door on the left. Ideally, I would hope that visitors choose to enter the chapel and then reach the other areas only once they have first passed through it. My vision was that light shooting through the the glass panels on the chapel's western corner would serve as enticement to guide people under its roof and into its sacred space.

Then from the chapel, one exits through a door on the right into the side chapel. Upon visiting the Land's End site in San Francisco myself, I found that my favorite view was one that captured a view of both the the beautiful trees to the north and a sliver of the ocean to the west. Thus, from the very beginnings of the design process I have always wanted this view to be one preserved and made special through my design. Rather than incorporating this view into the chapel itself, I wanted it to be that it was only after leaving the chapel, and passing into the side chapel, that people were rewarded with a beautiful view. Thus, I sort of thought of this side chapel as the next part of one's journey through the site--an interior space for contemplating one's experiences in the chapel before entering the exterior zen courtyard. Here is a photograph from the direction of my intended zen view of both one side of the chapel and the side chapel with its zen vista on the left.

Exiting the side chapel, visitors enter into the zen courtyard at which there is no longer any view of the ocean. This is why, for my beloved detail, I decided to incorporate some sort of small water element to remind people of the water surrounding them even when they cannot see it. At the northern most tip of the courtyard closest to the trees, I designed, as I mentioned before, a small sculptural reflective pond that mirrors the shape of the chapel's altarpiece inserted into its corner. Again, I wanted this space to represent a different point of one's journey whilst reminding them of spaces they had already passed through. I thought this sort of mirror image in a different location of my site would help visitors realize the change in thinking and feeling they had experienced since visiting.

It is then from this courtyard that visitors can either enter the office and bathroom area, or exit the site all together via the colonnaded pathway.

I hope that whatever route they choose, the visitor leaves with a sense of spiritual satisfaction in having made some sort of journey throughout their visit to the site.

After the many manipulations I have made to my design over the past five weeks, I am ultimately very satisfied with my final chapel design. Although there have been some bumps along the road and many sleepless nights, I must say this whole process has been a really great experience for me. At the beginning of the quarter, I NEVER would have thought I could design, let alone build ANYTHING, and yet here I am, 10 weeks later, will a full on designed and built chapel! So thank you to my 7 fellow CEE130 troopers for your support and fun times in the studio and thank you so so much to Patti and Glenn for all of your countless hours of help and for making this one experience I will never forget!!!!