TINY CHAPELS – EMBODYING MEANING

In what is becoming a more and more agnostic world, managed by the certainty of rational science and logical AI, and their intriguing distractions, the longing for something more exposes itself in various ways from time to time. One outcome that could be considered an extreme, is the gathering of large congregations of enthusiastic worshippers of various persuasions and titles, to express, share, and celebrate something more about life and a particular belief; the other consequence is more subtle and intimate, involving the personal desire to embody something of the inexplicable contemplative life in a small space, perhaps one could call it a chapel, to give something back to this mysterious world of silent wonder; to create a place for it; a home; to recognise it with a gesture explained as something like a heart-felt thank you; gratitude.

This building of a place of worship/retreat to shelter the soul from the hustle/bustle of the world that is getting ever busier ‘getting and spending,’ texting and consuming content, reminds one of the Crusaders, the knights who made a commitment prior to leaving for the Middle East, or in other challenging circumstances, declaring that if one should return home, then a church/chapel will be erected as a form of thanks, as if to bribe God or good fortune. So it is that we see many small churches dedicated to this idea/ideal, like that in Dinan, France:

Basilica of Saint-Saveur de Dinan.

The Basilica of Saint-Sauveur de Dinan is a Roman Catholic church situated in Dinan, France. 

Legend has it that Riwallon le Roux, the lord of Dinan, founded the priory of Saint-Sauveur de Dinan in 1112 upon his return from the Holy Land. As the story goes, the knight was taken prisoner during the First Crusade and vowed to build a church in honor of Saint-Sauveur and the Holy Trinity if he ever returned home.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Saint-Sauveur_%28Dinan%29

The Therme Vals.

And today, in our increasingly stressful times, we are seeing yet again, the building of places of worship/contemplation just as a gesture of thanks for life itself and all that this entails, to confirm this quiet richness by providing a secluded place for the repose of the spirit. The small chapels designed by Peter Zumthor have been well publicised, like his thermal baths, The Therme Vals at Graubünden, Switzerland, and have become miniature icons with a depth of vision and a detailed execution that is managed with a care and rigour that gives strength and commitment to the building, its concept, and its intentions; there is an integrity here that quietly hums a confirmation in tune with the resolve. It is in the referencing of forms and meaning, and this search for commitment, that one senses a struggle in some examples of these personal places that disrupts the cohesion of the intentions for place and experience, changing these with an unspoken distracting intrusion.

Zumthor’s work touches subtle matters with an integral wholeness that enriches experience. It highlights the traditional proposition that is rejected today, that emotive objectives, desires, and feelings that generate concepts and their construction, do permeate form and material into experience. Other projects make an effort to do likewise, but sadly seem to get lost in the words, distorted by another logic and interpretation, different ambitions, leaving the situation somewhat tensely divided, like the circumstance one senses with an artist trying to explain the idea of the artwork in esoteric terms that mock the obvious exoteric ordinariness of the piece, and vice versa, perhaps arguing shrewdly but obtusely, that less is always more: see – https://voussoirs.blogspot.com/2025/09/swell-25-necessity-essence.html.

Le Corbusier's chapel at Ronchamp.

The task to achieve the desired qualities in such precious projects is difficult in these Godless times, with one easily adopting things like simple numerical counts to touch on possible ‘Trinity’ connections, for example, or some other such structured, explicit referencing. Then there is the grasping at other forms and images from a few, favoured, successful outcomes that have managed to embody meaning, like the well known and much loved Chapel at Ronchamp by Le Corbusier. Likewise, the clichés that linger from older times are used, claimed for their connotation, like stained glass that becomes an indulgence in colour, intended as a reference that is meant to allude to historic spiritual purposes.

Unfortunately, unlike older times, our populations are literate, (see Ananda Coomaraswamy’s The Bugbear of Literacy), so the messages embodied in the cathedrals no longer hold their essential, enlightening essence, their vital, lived relevance; and we have no history of using graphic lettering on our buildings for more direct readings, in the ways that we see sacred words and texts used prolifically, and beautifully, in Islamic art and architecture. The only reference we have here to words on buildings is from the Renaissance and its revivalist buildings where names of scholars, et.al., were carved into friezes and the like to suggest recognition of genius, and to give stature to place.

So it is that references in these new, meaningful places for contemplation try to become more ‘symbolic’ in their intent, at a time when we know little about symbolism, and hold fewer and fewer common ideals that could identify meaning as a ‘common sense’ or a shared experience. In this situation, we see more of the referencing taking on what we know as the workings of a sign, rather than a symbol. The sign is more a self-consciously chosen directional pointer defining intended outcomes for the eye and thought, how and what to see, lacking the ‘inner necessity’ that Wassily Kandinsky spoke about in Concerning the Spiritual in Art, and which Abū Bakr Sirāj ad-Dīn (Martin Lings) alluded to in his explanation of the symbol as a shadow, noting that symbols: have the power to remind . . . of their counterparts in higher worlds not through merely incidental resemblance but because they are actually related to them in the way that a shadow is related to the object which it casts. There is not the least thing in existence which is not such a shadow . . . Nor is there anything which is any more than a shadow.  For more on the idea of a symbol see: https://voussoirs.blogspot.com/2024/06/country-outside-inside-place.html.

In some projects we see subtle matters transformed into blunt statements of fact, and personal interpretations and ideas being framed as expected universal outcomes, when they are merely hopeful fantasies, intentions desired and described in a way that remains otherwise – literally ‘wise’ in a different manner.

"Bales of Queensland sugarcane . . . with lines raked in the surrounding sand" to provide

"a space for contemplation and reflection."

An example of esoteric ideals seeking expression in exoteric elements.

The various published texts on these chapels offer links to other similar buildings, creating almost an endless chain of cross-referencing of projects. This selection begins the list and establishes a set of examples to further develop the ideas so far outlined.

THE CHAPELS

The Bruder Klaus Field Chapel   Peter Zumthor

https://www.archdaily.com/106352/bruder-klaus-field-chapel-peter-zumthor

"In order to design buildings with a sensuous connection to life,

one must think in a way that goes far beyond form and construction."

A floor of frozen molten lead.

Saint Benedict Chapel   Peter Zumthor

https://www.anticcolonial.com/en/naturelovers/saint-benedict-chapel-by-peter-zumthor/

The chapel occupies the space of a former baroque construction which was destroyed by an avalanche.

The remains of the former baroque chapel have been conserved.

Beams of wood sustain the spectacular roof, strengthened with rafters

reminiscent of the striations of a leaf or the roof of a boat.

Doshi Retreat   Balkrishna Doshi

https://www.dezeen.com/2025/10/24/balkrishna-doshi-retreat-vitra-campus/

 

This winding design evolved from a sketch based on a dream

that Doshi had about two intertwining cobras.

Two intertwined snakes is a Greek symbol of commerce, negotiation, and trickery.

One does wonder about the relevance and context on the Vitra site.

A space for solitude and contemplation.

One winner of the SWELL 2025 Sculpture Festival had constructed such a space,

but when visited it had people sitting, talking, and enjoying their ice creams.

These spaces rely on vacancy and respect that are not givens these days,

 even though the images like to suggest otherwise.

See: https://voussoirs.blogspot.com/2025/09/swell-25-necessity-essence.html

The walls of the sunken pathways and the sculptural pavilion are all crafted from weathered steel.

This is a most unfriendly product as it is covered in rust that stains both the body

and its clothes just with the slightest touch, and provides a stark, concerning contrast to the intent.

The Chapel of St Thérèse Lisieux   Bill O’Sullivan Architecture https://www.dezeen.com/2025/10/19/bull-osullivan-chapel-st-therese-lisieux/

"A gift to the people of Christchurch."

The 'Zumthor' door suggesting 'Trinity' begs the question of equality seen in the Gothic trefoil symbol.

"The triangular shape is a play on the Trinity - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit."

The chapel has an unfortunate 'wigwam/teepee' feel about it.

Trefoil - traditional symbol of the Trinity.

The truncation of the 'Trinity' creates an awkward tension.

The asymmetrical Christ alerts and distracts with the question:

Is this the semaphore letter C for Christ?

The rear glare becomes a concern, taking one's attention away even from the red glow above.

The use of the crucifix as a door handle goes close to mocking meaning,

turning it into a piece of kitsch.

Open Chapel in Germany Hometown   Christopher Hesse Architects https://www.dezeen.com/2025/03/02/open-chapel-christoph-hesse-architects/

The mandorla shape loses its integrity by being 'open' at one end.

Note how Zumthor enters his 'leaf' form building from the side.

Holes in this roof allow trailing plants to grow through, while a wooden candleholder

carved by a local carpenter in the centre of the chapel is suspended from thin metal cables.

One does wonder why this is so?

The busyness of 'side chapels' mesmerises and distracts in spite of the logic:

The twelve pillars that surround Open Chapel are made of a total of 3,960 sandstone blocks,

laid in a U-shape to create hollow niches on the interior for folding wooden benches.

Other niches higher up in the pillars, which are left empty, are intended as "spaces of remembrance",

dedicated to the ancestors of the village's residents.

One is reminded of the Torajan realm of the dead in Indonesia.

Toraja, Indonesia:

 "spaces of remembrance" dedicated to the ancestors.

The count of twelve is noted in the 'sandstone pillars,' but there is nothing said about

the twelve disciples that immediately come to mind, or the twelve months in the year.

Our Lady of Sorrows   Chapel RCNKSK

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/11/25/rcnksk-our-lady-of-sorrows-chapel/

The building has a strange 'radio tower' reference.

Surely the idea has nothing to do with messaging God?

The interior seems to have been inspired as a hybrid of the Zumthor chapels.

The Zumthor image comes to mind.

Meditation Chapel in Icheon   Atelier Koma 

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/01/21/atelier-koma-meditation-chapel/

The obvious reference is to Le Corbusier's chapel at Ronchamp,

a relationship that mediates by interfering with considered contemplation.

Externally, the inspiration seems to also draw on Le Corbusier's monastery of La Tourette.

Hometown Moon Chapel   Syn Architects

https://www.dezeen.com/2021/10/28/syn-architects-hometown-moon-chapel-china-architecture/

The singular authority of the idea seems to dominate the reading rather than prompt quiet meditation:

a moon that never sets.

WOW!

 

"The buildings complement each other as symbolic counterparts . . . after crossing a mountain, a river

and exploring a few curved pathways, visitors finally arrive at the building," said the practice.

Do the words translate into experience beyond the factual description?

Fuego Nuevo Chapel   WRKSHP

https://www.dezeen.com/2021/10/12/concrete-travertine-minimalist-fuego-nuevo-chapel-mexico-wrkshp/

Touches from La Tourette linger in the interior.

The determination of the structure demands attention for its harsh rigour rather than its symbolism.

The exterior seems to have drawn inspiration from Le Corbusier's monastery chapel of La Tourette.

The crucifix form at the entry becomes a kitsch element rather than a symbol for worship.

Church of Beatified Restituta   Atelier Stepan

https://www.dezeen.com/2020/09/20/atelier-stepan-church-of-beatified-restituta-rainbow-stained-glass/

"An 80-metre-long, rainbow-coloured stained-glass window that wraps

around the top pf the concrete drum."

The image seems to have gained inspiration form Zumthor's St Benedict chapel.

The core element is the coloured light that references both stained glass and rainbows.

Alas, the rainbow has other connotations these days beyond spiritualism;

and coloured light carries no immediate meaning beyond being a subtle decoration.

"A place of contemplation away from the bustle of modern life."

"The church should serve as a place for contemplation -

a space stripped of superfluous visual, and other, sensations."

One is left wondering just what this means in a building that has been so carefully and deliberately detailed,

complete with the eye-catching coloured dome.

The meaning of the tower and its bridge puzzles.

Church of St Wenceslas   Atelier Stepan

https://www.dezeen.com/2017/08/26/church-st-wenceslas-atelier-stepan-sazovice-czech-republic/

Windows appear to have been carved out of the curving walls.

One wonders about the intention in this sculptural gesture.

The studio based its design on the circular Romanesque churches built in the 10th century.

It is a nice notion but remains just that.

"I created the windows by pushing and pulling the cuts, and letting

the light glide in softly on the walls."

This is a description of method rather than anything else,

leaving one wonder about the ambitions for the place

other than being 'sculptural' like the chapel at Ronchamp.

POSTSCRIPT

One can sense the problems involved in attempting to embody some sense of solace in these special places. Kahn spoke of the process of creating place:

A great building must begin with the unmeasurable, must go through measurable means when it is being designed and in the end must be unmeasurable.

It is this unmeasurable that we confront when we are seeking a form for contemplation.

Kahn has spoken of this too:

“Form comes from wonder. Wonder stems from our ‘in touchness’ with how we were made. One senses that nature records the process of what it makes, so that in what it makes there is also the records of how it was made. In touch with this record we are in wonder. This wonder gives rise to knowledge. But knowledge is related to other knowledge and this relation gives a sense of order, a sense of how they inter-relate in a harmony that makes all things exist. From knowledge to sense of order we then wink at wonder and say ‘How am I doing, wonder?”

From The Notebooks & Drawings of Louis I Kahn.

Zumthor notes a similar notion, that there is more:

"In order to design buildings with a sensuous connection to life, one must think in a way that goes far beyond form and construction."

There is no set of rules that can be followed; the matter is personal, but it must never remain individually peculiar. We are not talking about the ‘self-expression’ identified by many artists today, ‘expressing myself,’ or anything to do with MY intimate, everyday feeling; nor are we talking about preferred signs. There are far more universal matters involved. Tradition has spoken about this, noting that if these things could be told, they would have been; but our era is keen to stride on with its own determination anchored in ‘the progress of the intellect’ determined by ‘the genius of the individual.’

We need to know more about these matters that involve a way of thinking, a subtle understanding of wholeness, if we are to embody meaning in a meaningful manner. We could start by displaying greater tolerance and humility in our efforts to establish a sensibility that can connect with these matters. It begins with the individual, but it is not individual.

One can see how easy it is to become kitsch; to reference matters that embody other connotations in spite of intentions; and how problematical it can be developing meaningful forms when precedent surrounds us. There is a depth here that requires an understanding and recognition that substantial personal matters are involved, but never in a personal way. This proposition is difficult for our era to contemplate when individualism is embraced and encouraged by social media and other digital involvements that confirm and empower ME. Just how we might manage these matters remains for each of us to discover; it has to happen if we are to appropriately deal with subtle, enriching issues.

We need to understand again the significance of symbols; and the reality that personal inspiration is misguided, will lead us astray, in spite of everything today promoting matters differently. That we seek out special places for contemplation is a beginning that could hold its own ironic revelatory outcome and establish roots for the engagement in matters of wonder that could blossom into form.