New Valer Church, Norwegian Religious Building Design, Contest

New Valer Church, Norway

Norwegian Religious Building designs by various architects

5 Apr 2012

New Valer Church Design by Krill architectuur

Norwegian Church Building – entry

Design: Krill architectuur

An Open Ring in the Woods

In commissioning the competition, the church of Våler chose for a seldom witnessed step in church history, one that always comes with interesting results. Tapping on a source of collective creativity in modern architecture offers the chance to bring the development of church architecture to a new level. A building combining monumentality to accessibility, openness to spirituality, is awesome, while being friendly. In short: a church fitting in this time.

pictures from Krill architectuur

The church building is designed for two important, but seemingly incompatible demands: the open character of the gathering space (Domus Ecclesiae), involving the church in the community, and the closed character of the spiritual, secluded space (Domus Dei), promising peace of mind. It is for that reason that the church will be placed as an open ring in a newly designed park. The ring, enclosing a patio, will be lifted on one side, giving people the opportunity to come in, without crossing a threshold. One is just there.

Within the surroundings of the ring several spaces are collected unther a partly open roof. Outside, reachable through the ring shaped passageway wordly functions are positioned, such as the toilets, storage and technical spaces, but also the rooms for pastor and eldermen. That way their offices are also reachable from outside. The ruins of the old church will be cladded with granite and solar collectors. The old church warms the new that way.
(open ring is derived from R. Schwarz)

pictures from Krill architectuur

Client: Valer church parish, competition
Design: Harmen van de Wal, with Raimonda Cybaite, Jiri Serek, Christine Sundberg
Program: church
Date: Nov 2011
Location: Valer, Norway

Krill architectuur are based in Rotterdam, The Netherlands

New Valer Church images / information from Krill architectuur

26 Mar 2012

New Valer Church Design by WE architecture

Norwegian Church Building – entry

Design: WE architecture

pictures from WE architecture

Skyscape

The beautiful Vaaler church from 1805 burnt down in the spring of 2009. We have designed a new church as a symbolic landmark to succeed the old building. The new Vaaler church is placed further east from the placement of the old church, marking the historic axis with its tower. The new building is designed as a simple box where one corner is lifted up in order to point out the church room and the tower.

pictures from WE architecture

The functions are organized in such way that the church is highly flexible regarding alternative use of the building. The entrance hall and the church room are placed alongside each other so that the two spaces can be joined and create one large room for events such as Christmas market or concerts. Inside the church room, the ceiling is composed of a stepping grid construction in wood like an inverted skyscape, letting light into the room.

Representative for the important forestry industry in the municipality of Vaaler, the new monument is to be made of massive timber elements, defining the church as an innovative and ambitious establishment in the local community.

pictures from WE architecture

Name: Skyscape
Asssignment: Open competition
Type: Church
Client: Vaaler Municipality
Place: Vaaler, Norway
Year: 2011
Team: Marc Jay, Julie Schmidt-Nielsen, Nora Fossum, Krystian Dziopek, Karolina Kierner, Mette B. G. Steffensen, Kristian Hindsberg & Casper Berntsen

WE architecture are based in Copenhagen, Denmark

New Valer Church images / information from WE architecture

26 Mar 2012

New Valer Church Design by Roz Barr Architects

Norwegian Church Building – 3rd place

Design: Roz Barr Architects

pictures from architects

This design was awarded 3rd place in Valer Church Competition in Norway.

The ambition for the new church and square is create a new centre and public place for the town of Valer. The new church sits perpendicular to the existing chapel to the north of the site allowing the building to form a face to this new granite square. The paving module using the bush hammered granite which is currently around the skirt of the existing chapel will form the base of this natural palette.

The square offers a bell tower, sculpted in Cor-Ten steel and a symbolic tree, a local fir which will soften this hard strata. The new square offers a forum for parades, celebrations, commemorations as well as markets or small concerts.

The proposed church is a strong monolithic shrouded form. It is a marker in the landscape. Inspiration from surrounding farm buildings on visiting the site inspired the architectural language of the church.

The proposed shuttered silver birch external facades are tightly constructed using tongue and groove vertical engineered panels that are 500cm x 25cm long. A single vertical cut within the east elevation forms new church window above the internal alter and is the only opening within the main elevations. The dome is lit by a circular glass top light.

The square of the plan form of the main church space is wrapped in hand stacked local bush hammered granite by single story ancillary spaces. The main church space is lit only by the main church window and a circular top light to the dome. Hand stacking blocks of larch timber will form this beautiful dome to interior of the main church space.

A suspended bronze ring will break the ordering of this timber interior and refract light internally.

Working with Latz and Partners on the proposal for the existing site and landscape, the aim was to connect the grove and the existing wood with identical trees and shrubs in order to form a frame that will lead the eye to the church, and define the limit of the graveyard. By enclosing the site boundary with a woodland it will become a place for walks and allow the community to become part of this newly defined landscape.

The stone ruin of the former church would be planted as a wild flower meadow which will offer colour and scent to the centre of the cemetery.

Roz Barr Architects were awarded third place in this international competition out of 250 entries. It was the biggest architectural competition Norway has had sincel the Oslo Opera House.

Roz Barr Architects Ltd are based in London

New Valer Church images / information from Roz Barr Architects

20 Mar 2012

New Valer Church

Norwegian Church Building by Spanish Architects

Design: OOIIO Architecture

A few years ago, the inhabitants of Valer, a quiet Norwegian village not too far from Oslo, surrounded by forests and close to the Swedish border, watched how sadly their ancient wooden church was on fire and got totally destroyed.

pictures from OOIIO Architecture

This is why at the end of 2011, they decided to invite architects from all the world to design a new temple that mean a new beginning for the religious community at town.

OOIIO Architecture designed for Valer a different and new typology of building, trying to solve two problems of the city at the same time. They need a new church, and they don´t have a representative public space, a meeting point where all the inhabitants could meet or immediately associate it to Valer, and nowhere else.

pictures from OOIIO Architecture

Usually, churches and temples show a main façade open to a public space more or less representative in front of them. OOIIO Architecture with this building offers a new possibility for this old relation. The church is at the same time a temple and a public space. It main façade is now the roof, and it can be used for all the Valer inhabitants as the representative space that they are missing.

pictures from OOIIO Architecture

Thanks to this new singular urban object, the users can discover new views to the city center and main monuments, like the cemetery, the chapel, or the old church ruins. They can lay under the sun in summer or just go for a walk or meet some friends. The temple interior is really bright and open to the surroundings. All the building is made in wood, following the local construction tradition and industries.

It will be built on an elegant and quick way taking care of the carbon emissions. The general building view remember quite a lot to the drying planks from the surrounding industries… or a pile of white papers, ready to be written with the new Valer History!

pictures from OOIIO Architecture

New Valer Church – Building Information

Location: Norway
Project Title: New Valer Church
Client: Valer Council
Architect: OOIIO Architecture / Joaquin Millan
Site area: 5,000 m2
Gross Floor area: 1,250 m2
Location: Valer, Norway
Status: Competition – Design phase

Collaborators: Cristina Vicario del Cojo, Beatriz Cerratos Vázquez, Sergio Velasco Mayordomo, Bente Teigen Gundersen
Design: OOIIO Architecture
Team: Joaquín Millán Villamuelas, Cristi na Vicario del Cojo, Beatriz Cerratos Vázquez, Sergio Velasco Mayordomo, Bente Teigen Gundersen

New Valer Church images / information from OOIIO Architecture

OOIIO Architecture are based in Madrid, Spain

Location: Valer, Norway