world architecture festival
These buildings, shortlisted by the 2015 World Architecture Festival, challenge design notions of sacred spaces.
world architecture festival
Cardedeu is situated in the picturesque mountains surrounding Lake Coatepeque in El Salvador. "We didn't want Cardedeu to compete with nature, we could see and feel God in it. We just wanted to create a space that would enhance the focus in nature and feel connected to a person's beliefs and emotions. For us, it had to be simple, it had to be unadorned," says Gabriela Siman, project manager at EMC Arquitectura of the building's design.
world architecture festival
"It was intended as a scene for the landscape and handled as a unique space developed with a single material, concrete, to highlight the lake and mountains," says Gabriela Siman, project manager at EMC Arquitectura. The design's informal reticular pattern deliberately limits the visitor's view to the lake, enticing the visitor to explore its greater surroundings.
world architecture festival
Hiroshi Nakamura, CEO of Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP Co. Ltd, says the chapel's form-defying design symbolizes the union of marriage: "Just as two lives go through twists and turns before uniting as one, the two spirals seamlessly connect at the top to form a single ribbon. By entwining two spiral stairways, we realized a free-standing building of unprecedented composition could architecturally embody the act of marriage. At this chapel, bride and groom ascend the stairs separately to be joined together at the top, ask for heaven's pardon, and declare their marriage."
World Architecture Festival
The wedding chapel is built on the grounds of a resort hotel overlooking the Seto Inland Sea. Part of the design's circular plan was informed by its surroundings -- a thick forest that would block views of the sea. The chapel's form was therefore extended higher than the trees and its 360 degree views work as an idyllic observation platform for visitors.
©MYAA
The Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies is located in Education City, on the outskirts of Doha. The building, which includes spaces for learning and a mosque, imparts Islamic values and education in a modern and progressive setting. The taller south facing mosque is intended to provide shade to the main courtyard.
©Qatar Foundation
According to Mangera Yvars Architects, the design incorporates the ethereal qualities of Islamic space --the use of light, the reverberation of prayer, the use of calligraphy, geometry and ornamentation. Calligraphy and Qur'anic verse decorates the building's facade. The design of the building's acoustics enable the call to prayer to resonate throughout the building.
world arhictecture festival
The Light of Life church is located on the outskirts of Seoul, South Korea, on the south side of Bori mountain. The exterior of the church resembles a modern green-house pyramid, and encases a wooden dome.
World Architecture Festival
The church's interior takes note of its mountainous and heavily forested surroundings -- its interior looks like an inverted treehouse, made of 834 differently sized pieces of Siberian red cedar wood. A cross is fixed in the middle of a pool of water.
world architecture festival
The Catholic City Hub was directly commissioned by the Catholic church in Singapore. Located in the heart of the city, the building functions as a community center, with office spaces, a café, multi-purpose function halls, and a library.
World Architecture Festival
The rippling lines of the building's facade are based on the score of a Gregorian chant. Project architect Christopher Khoo of Eco.id Architects, says the inspiration behind the building's facade was church instruments. "We wanted to use a simple material, in this case, lightweight aluminum. It resembles wind chimes or organ pipes. The aluminum tubes were used to give the building a modern look."
world architecture festival
This church's design is made of three concentric ovals and its warm, intimate interior is lined with timber. Teak wood slats are horizontally secured onto steel frames. Director of the Indonesian branch of Denton Corker Marshall, Budiman Hendropurnomo says the use of these materials and structure of design are intended to create acoustics that "would have the likeness of singing inside a violin."
World Architecture Festival
This catholic church was designed to seat up to 500 people in its canoe-like balconies. Natural materials such as stone and timber are used throughout the design.
World Architecture Festival
This monastery was re-designed with the intention of creating a modern center for Buddhist practice and culture, with a special emphasis on Buddhist art. Its facade is inspired by the golden colors and geometric patterns found on the cassock, or robe, of Buddhist monks.
World Architecture Festival.
The circulation through the monastery is a mix of indoor and outdoor spaces, gardens and water features that give pause for reflection.
world architecture festival
The temple was rebuilt on a former Ming Dynasty temple site destroyed during the Sino-Japanese war. Since its opening, it has been frequented by Buddhists and the wider public.
world architecture festival
The design is a modern take on traditional Buddhist temples, and embodies Zen ideas of emptiness and anatta, or the denial of a self. Its poetic name is a nod to its location "floating" in a wetland park in southwest China, as well as Buddhists concepts of cause, effect, completeness and incompleteness, which resemble the physical form of a moon.
world architecture festival
The word pagoda usually evokes images of tiered towers with upturned eaves. Pagoda, in this case, is stripped down to a single slab of rock -- a place of solitude and worship. "We wanted to create a stone pagoda that could fulfill the objectives of a temple -- as a pure place full of love, a space where people can practice meditation and find peace and a quiet stillness within," says architect Toan Nghiem of a21 Studio.
World Architecture Festival
This structure was inspired by an image of Buddha sitting under the Bodhi tree in Nepal, where he attained enlightenment. Architect Toan Nghiem of a21 Studio says the firm is concerned about Buddhism's decline, and its struggle to adapt to modern society. "We would like to use our architecture as a medium to solve spiritual problems. This is a simple work, but significant enough to spread a powerful idea."

Editor’s Note: In the run up to this year’s 8th annual World Architecture Festival in Singapore, we preview buildings shortlisted in some of the more unusual categories.

Story highlights

The 8th edition of the World Architecture Festival will be held November 4-6.

2,200 architects from 60 countries are expected to convene in Singapore for the event.

In a bi-monthly series, CNN Style will feature buildings found in various categories.

CNN  — 

Cathedrals and temples were the skyscrapers of their day. Crafted by leading designers and intended to evoke powerful feelings of wonder and awe, religious buildings were the architectural focal points of traditional city planning.

But how has the story changed for newly built places of worship? This week, a selection of the most imaginative religious spaces completed within the last 3 years will be showcased at the World Architecture Festival in Singapore.

The festival – the world’s largest international architectural event of its type – features 2,200 architects from 60 countries and honors designs in 31 differing categories, including sport, the use of color in buildings, future concepts, sport and religion.

“The quality of architecture is invariably high in the religion category, which I think is because communities and religious organizations are often commissioning these projects,” opines Paul Finch, World Architecture Festival program director.

“Because of this, the buildings are in a sense, above functionality,” Finch continues. “The brief is usually looking for something that engages with the spirit, has elements of beauty and calm and reflection, and that’s a wonderful thing for architects to respond to. It’s hard to tell if they themselves are or aren’t religious.”

This year, nine buildings from around the world have been shortlisted in the religion category. The buildings, all modest in scale, examine themes of modernity and nature.

From a church whose acoustics are meant to have the likeness of “singing in a violin,” to a chapel that literally and metaphorically unites a bride and groom in marriage, the buildings featured in the gallery above, challenge design notions of sacred spaces.