Rwanda Chapel

Religious architecture is often the core of human settlements. The concept of the project was to create a church in Rwanda for a small community of Poor Clare nuns. The building is conceived as a temple and a meeting and prayer space for the community of Rukomo, a small town in Rwanda.

The church in Rwanda

Rwanda Chapel is located exempt in a forest owned by a convent of Poor Clares, close to Rukomo. The premise of the project is based on the need to carry out the building with local materials and personnel, given the lack of infrastructure and Rukomo's social reality.

The Atrium precedes the access to the temple, it is considered as a transit and meeting space. In it is the bell to call for prayer and access to the temple service precincts.

The nave is the room where the Christian community meets. It is oriented towards the altar, in which there is a resurrected Christ formed by the hollow left by wooden slats.

Structurally the building is composed of a series of barrel vaults and supported half vaults, which allow a play of heights and the dynamization of the entrance of light. Its construction is planned with local materials such as brick, wood and ceramics.

Since adult baptism is common in Rwanda, a baptistery has been proposed in the center of the temple. The baptistery is exterior and is located in a courtyard open to the Nave. The use of the baptistery brings the spirit of the first Christian communities.

Temple symbolism

It faces the symbolism of death, reflected in the baptism ceremony itself, the symbolism of the resurrection, reflected in the resurrected Christ of the altar.

The sacristy is the area of the temple where the priest dresses and liturgical objects are kept. It is located behind the altar so that the priest can access the ship independently to the congregation of the faithful.

Sacred illumination

A zenith lighting is proposed through skylights formed by ceramic lattices. Zenithal lighting brings solemnity to space while spatially isolating it from the outside.