Chapel of St. Ignatius by Steven Holl Architects receives AIA’s Twenty-five Year Award

{"version":"0.3.0","atoms":[],"cards":[],"markups":[["strong"],["a",["href","https:\/\/www.aia.org\/showcases\/6512366-chapel-of-st-ignatius"]],["b"]],"sections":[[1,"p",[[0,[0],1,"Chicago \u2013 June 24, 2022\n\u2013"],[0,[],0," The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is\nhonoring the Chapel of St. Ignatius in Seattle, designed by Steven Holl\nArchitects, with its Twenty-five Year Award. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\n\nAIA\u2019s Twenty-five Year Award is conferred on a building that has set a\nprecedent for the last 25-35 years and continues to set standards of excellence\nfor its architectural design and significance. \n"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\nThe impetus for the chapel began in 1994 when Father William Sullivan\nimplemented his plan to construct a new center for spiritual life at Seattle\nUniversity. During the interview process, Steven Holl and his design team\npresented a lecture on the phenomenology of architecture, which the campus\nministry embraced and connected to related writings by St. Ignatius. After\nreceiving the commission, the saint\u2019s teachings became a primary source of\ninspiration. The design team worked closely with the ministry and students to\ndefine the program throughout the design process and visited several important\nIgnatian sites in Barcelona and Rome.\n"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\nIn designing the chapel, the team settled on the metaphor of light as the\ndivine spirit, featured in a quote by St. Ignatius, to serve as the guiding\ndesign concept. Within, light is sculpted through several volumes that protrude\nfrom the chapel roof, each of which aims to harness different qualities of\nlight for one united ceremony. Its site formed a new quadrangle for the\nuniversity\u2019s campus, with green space to the north, west, and, in the future,\neast. Its rectangular plan was carefully tailored to define the campus space as\nwell as the processional and gathering space within."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Each of the chapel\u2019s\nlight volumes supports fundamental elements of the Jesuit worship program. For\ninstance, south-facing light corresponds with the procession, an essential\ncomponent of mass, while city-facing northern light, corresponds with the\nChapel of the Blessed Sacrament and the Jesuit tradition of community outreach.\nThe different lights concept is further enhanced by the combination of pure\ncolored lenses and fields of reflected color within each light volume. "]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"The chapel\u2019s\noverarching design concept of seven bottles of light contained within a stone\nbox is also expressed through its tilt-up construction method. Its integral\ncolor tilt-up concrete slab offers a more direct and economical tectonic than\nstone veneer. At night, the key time for the university community to celebrate\nmass, the volumes all glow like-colored beacons that can be seen across the\ncampus. On some occasions, for those constantly praying, the lights shine\nthroughout the night. While the gathering of different lights concept framed\nthe design, it is also emblematic of the university\u2019s mission and the many\nnationalities of students who attend and gather under one roof. The\ncontributions of those students were central to the design process, which\ndelivered a design for the chapel that is simultaneously forward-looking and\nfirmly rooted in the past."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"\nVisit "],[0,[1],1,"AIA\u2019s website"],[0,[],0," to learn more about the Twenty-five Year Award."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[2],1,"About AIA"]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"Founded\nin 1857, AIA consistently works to create more valuable, healthy, secure, and\nsustainable buildings, neighborhoods, and communities. Through more than 200\ninternational, state and local chapters, AIA advocates for public policies that\npromote economic vitality and public wellbeing."]]],[1,"p",[[0,[],0,"AIA provides members with tools and resources to assist them\nin their careers and business as well as engaging civic and government leaders\nand the public to find solutions to pressing issues facing our communities,\ninstitutions, nation, and world. Members adhere to a code of ethics and conduct\nto ensure the highest professional standards."]]]]}