The Sculptural Symbolism of the New Church of Santiago de Antas

2019-03-14 14:32

Located in Vila Nova de Famalicão, a small town in northern Portugal, the New Church of Santiago de Antas by local architect Hugo Correia boldly eschews the architectural typology of Catholic churches for an idiosyncratic design of sculptural resplendence. Standing next to the old Romanesque Church, the concrete structure seems all the more radical in respect to form, texture and colour despite its inherent simplicity, a paradox that lends the church a pious monumentality that graciously serves its holy function while allotting the building a landmark status. Correia has taken advantage of the church’s prominent position to create a new edifice for the town based on an architectural language of symbolic significance. Elliptical in footprint, the building’s form was derived by combining the round shape of the Holy Chalice with the proportions of the Latin cross, while the interlocking rings that mark its exterior allude to the crown of thorns that Jesus was forced to wear during the crucifixion. Featuring very few visible openings tucked away behind the encircling rings, the white concrete volume is marked by the oversized black entrance doors whose crucifix likeness is the building's only religious marking.

位于葡萄牙北部的小镇VilaNovadeFamalicheno，当地建筑师HugoCorreia在圣地亚哥的新教堂大胆地设计了天主教堂的建筑类型，以独特的雕塑风格设计。在古老的罗马式教堂旁边，尽管其固有的简单性，但具体的结构似乎与形式、质地和颜色更激进，这种矛盾使教会具有虔诚的纪念性，同时使教堂在建造一座具有里程碑意义的地位的同时为其神圣的功能提供了慷慨的服务。科雷亚利用了教会的突出地位，以一种具有象征意义的建筑语言为城镇创建一座新的大厦。在足迹的椭圆形中，建筑的形式是通过将圣杯的圆形形状与拉丁十字的比例组合而得到的，而将它的外部标记的互锁环指的是耶稣在十字架上被迫穿的荆棘的冠冕。在环绕的环后面有很少可见的开口，白色的混凝土体积被超大的黑色入口门标记，其十字架的肖像是建筑物唯一的宗教标志。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

The all-white palette of the exterior is picked up inside, the only exception being the wooden floors and the bespoke wooden seating that can accommodate 500 congregants. Gently enveloped by curving walls and softly illuminated by hidden skylights during the day and concealed lighting at night, the nave is a serene space for prayer and reflection. This sense is further enhanced by the mesmerizing altarpiece, a glazed mosaic of white pottery pieces interlaced with gold and silver leafs that depicts St. James and Our Lady of Conception, in front of which, the minimally designed crucifix evocatively mirrors the cross-like incision of the entrance doors, albeit in white instead of black.

外部的全白色调色板是在里面捡起的，唯一的例外是木制地板和定制的木制座椅，可以容纳500名聚集者。在白天被弯曲的墙壁轻轻包裹，白天被隐藏的天窗轻轻地照亮，晚上被隐蔽的灯光照亮，那是一个宁静的祈祷和反思的空间。这一感觉被陶醉的祭坛进一步增强了，这是一个白陶片的釉面马赛克，与金银叶交织在一起，描绘了圣詹姆斯和我们的概念女神，在圣詹姆斯和我们的概念夫人面前，最小设计的十字形十字架令人印象深刻地反映了大门的十字形切口，尽管是白色的，而不是黑色的。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

Photo by João Morgado.

图为若昂·莫加多。

The duality of the white and black crucifixes is a gesture of poetic symmetry as are the white and red marble lines that the architect has embedded in the wooden floor. Running in parallel along the building’s longitudinal axis, the lines connect the altar with the exterior while crossing paths twice. The white line symbolizes the river Jordan where Christ was baptized and is therefore also linked to the church’s baptismal font, whereas the red line is symbolic of the blood coming from the sword of St. James and extends to the pulpit where the scriptures are read from. With five additional spaces on the basement level serving the local community, including an events space with 200 seating capacity, the New Church of Santiago de Antas has fast become an integral part of both the town’s landscape and its people’s lives.

白色和黑色十字架的二重性是一种诗意对称的姿态，它是建筑师在木地板中嵌入的白色和红色大理石线条。沿着建筑物的纵轴线平行地运行，线将祭坛与外部连接，同时交叉路径是两次。这条白线象征着约旦河，在那里，基督受洗，因此也与教堂的洗礼仪式相联系，而红线象征着来自圣詹姆斯的剑的血的象征，并延伸到从圣詹姆斯那里读经文的地方。在为当地社区服务的基层上增设了5个空间，包括200个座位的活动空间，圣地亚哥的新教堂迅速成为该镇的景观和人民生活的组成部分。