Saint Nicholas Eastern Orthodox Church Context
The Saint Nicholas Eastern Orthodox Church transformed a generic shop building into a place of worship and fellowship. The existing structure was oriented in opposition to the Eastern axis that typically prevails in an Orthodox Church, so a narrow addition was placed on the western side, allowing the narthex to be folded, ending at the base of the tower. The skylight tower pours red light down into the transition between the narthex and the sanctuary, giving a moment of pause before entering to worship. A narrow cross is suspended on the western side of the tower, back-lit by the morning sun to become a beacon for arriving parishioners. Once inside the sanctuary, a transom that spans the entire width of the space faces east and bathes the space in soft morning light during Sunday morning services. The exterior skin is a box rib metal panel, common in local industrial buildings, while the interior finishes are kept simple, though handled carefully. Portions of the existing building are still exposed, reminding visitors of the history of the site and the transformation the church has undergone. (descriptive text taken from the website of Marlon Blackwell Architect)
Existing Metal Garage
When I drove out to take a look at this project, I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to find. When I spoke with Marlon, he gave me directions like I lived there (which I don’t), but they were good enough for me to find the place. Once I arrived, I recognized this building from the design sketches I saw when I was in his office. There was also a section of of the box ribbed metal siding they used for this project in the office and it was as interesting as promised. I was prepared to not like this building but to judge a thing without understanding it isn’t entirely fair. I have worked on a lot of projects where certain master strokes were removed from our control and as a result, aspects of the project become bittersweet.
If you go to the website for this religious group and read about their current situation – no worship building, limited budget, and a long list of needs – you can conclude that this project is a manifestation, or product, of their optimism, faith and budget. The day I went, it was cold, raining (and therefore cloudy…again) and the building was locked up but there were workers on site trying to spray down grass seed. I would have liked to really been able to understand more about the building and how the colored windows impacted the spaces inside. The design and final form shown in the pictures below all started with the existing 3 bay metal garage building. Still not sure if I like the final product but as a thing, there are parts that are well crafted and thought through. The scale of the building and the context of the materials can be rationally explained as things connected to this place and this time – I’m just not sure I understand it as a church. This may be harsh but it seems more a product of a predetermined style and budget not having experienced the inside. I would have enjoyed hearing how this project was described to the parishioner’s during the design phase because as an architect who likes boxy metal buildings, this is pretty far out there.
Saint Nicholas Eastern Orthodox Church
My time has been spent looking at buildings and context. I was interested in looking for inspiration that helped define the work of local architects who were interested in drawing on the past to help shape the future. In one of my conversations with Marlon Blackwell, I asked him how his work was received in this community; Did they care that he has an international reputation, won loads of design awards, and was the current Head of Architecture at the University of Arkansas? That this seems like an outwardly traditional community, not demonstrative, and that there are very few things that seem to intentionally draw attention to themselves. Marlon’s work, by it’s very nature, stands out. Marlon told me that he works from the traditional shapes of buildings that people already see here so they recognize that in his work, that it doesn’t look like it landed from outer space.
I’m not so sure I would have come to the same conclusion but I don’t know this area and it’s people very well. So I went out looking at older agrarian buildings to see if I could recognize some of the shapes. In some cases I could and in some cases I couldn’t (but I am no Marlon Blackwell). I did, however, find scale and material similarities, simple forms, spaces and volumes that were dictated by programming and a combination of the previously mentioned items.
I am going to need some more time to review what I have seen and take some time to do some reading. I did find most of the work inspiring. You can see the attention to scale Marlon puts into his projects, the palette of materials, his critical study of light – these things are obvious to anyone who stops and looks. The study of the forms, the positives and negatives, masses relocated, rotated and slipped into new positions – that will take more time (and sleep).
I would like to thank Marlon for taking time out of his busy schedule to accommodate me and my questions – he gave me more time than I expected. He set up a PowerPoint presentation for me (several actually). At one time, he took a phone call while I finished watching the slide show; he was talking to a client who was trying to decide who to hire, Marlon’s office or another firm. Marlon’s design inspired the client but the other firm addressed the specific functions of the programming. What to do? When given that choice, I choose inspiration. Can you imagine the different conversations the client would have between the two architects? Your design is really inspiring, can you make it more practical? versus Your design is really practical, can you make it more inspiring? Inspiration is important to what we do and I think the client will come around.
If you were to ever meet Marlon you would like him, it’s really hard not to….Here are some photos of Marlon’s work and some local context. I will try and isolate some specific projects later. Right now I’m tired and don’t have the brainpower to do this (and this post is really rambling).
