Church and parish complex
Forlì, Italy
2015
competition
The volume of the new church is simple: a sequence of structural septa shaped into two opposite arches modulates a parallelepiped. One arch is based to the ground while the other one is lifted upwards, to form a homogeneous design, which gives a shape to the proximity between the temporal dimension and the spiritual dimension.
The light comes from above and models the space.
Passing through the semicircular septa it seizes a volumetric consistency and remains suspended between heaven and earth.
Translucent colored elements on the roof transfigure the light through chromatic variations that confer the sacred space expressiveness and mystery.
The architecture, besides its unitariness, highlights the different nature of the two spheres to which it relates, the liturgical and pastoral one.
A built border that connects the church, the loggia and churchyard, the square and the pre-school building, defines the urban layout along via Valeria while the bell tower, aligned to the axis of the neighborhood, becomes the backdrop of the new complex.
This layout consolidates the urban edge on the northwest and opens up to an articulated arrangement to the south, where the buildings for pastoral activities and the day center for the elderly are situated.
The use of brick unifies the different substances, giving a morphological homogeneity the complex.
client: Archdiocese of Forlì Bertinoro
architectural design: Quattroassociati
gross floor area: 4.000 sqm
church for 500 people
parish offices
parish oratory
3 apartments
Caritas center
pre-school
sports fields