Sunset Chapel / BNKR Arquitectura

Feb 2011

Uploaded by Andrew Rosenberg — Filed under: Religious Architecture ,Selected , Acapulco, BNKR Arquitectura, Concrete, Mexico

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Architects: BNKR Arquitectura
Location: Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico
Partners: Esteban Suárez (Founding Partner), Sebastián Suárez
Project Leaders: Mario Gottfried, Javier González & Roberto Ampudia
Project Team: Mario Gottfried, Rodrigo Gil, Roberto Ampudia, Javier González, Óscar Flores, David Sánchez, Diego Eumir, Guillermo Bastian & Adrian Aguilar
Collaborators: Jorge Arteaga y Zaida Montañana
Structural Engineers: Juan Felipe Heredia & José Ignacio Báez
MEP: SEI
Lighting: Noriega Iluminadores – Ricardo Noriega
Construction: Factor Eficiencia – Fermin Espinosa & Francisco Villeda
Project area: 120 sqm
Project year: 2011
Photographs: Esteban Suárez

Our first religious commission was a wedding chapel conceived to celebrate the first day of a couple’s new life. Our second religious commission had a diametrically opposite purpose: to mourn the passing of loved ones. This premise was the main driving force behind the design, the two had to be complete opposites, they were natural antagonists. While the former praised life, the latter grieved death. Through this game of contrasts all the decisions were made: Glass vs. Concrete, Transparency vs. Solidity, Ethereal vs. Heavy, Classical Proportions vs. Apparent Chaos, Vulnerable vs. Indestructible, Ephemeral vs. Lasting…

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The client brief was pretty simple, almost naïve: First, the chapel had to take full advantage of the spectacular views. Second, the sun had to set exactly behind the altar cross (of course, this is only possible twice a year at the equinoxes). And last but not least, a section with the first phase of crypts had to be included outside and around the chapel. Metaphorically speaking, the mausoleum would be in perfect utopian synchrony with a celestial cycle of continuous renovation.

Two elements obstructed the principal views: large trees and abundant vegetation, and a behemoth of a boulder blocking the main sight of the sunset. In order to clear these obstructions (blowing up the gigantic rock was absolutely out of the question for ethical, spiritual, environmental and, yes, economical reasons) the level of the chapel had to be raised at least five meters. Since only exotic and picturesque vegetation surrounds this virgin oasis, we strived to make the least possible impact on the site reducing the footprint of the building to nearly half the floor area of the upper level.

Acapulco’s hills are made up of huge granite rocks piled on top of each other. In a purely mimetic endeavor, we worked hard to make the chapel look like “just another” colossal boulder atop the mountain.

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: © Esteban Suárez

: site plan

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* Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.

Cite:
Rosenberg , Andrew . "Sunset Chapel / BNKR Arquitectura" 28 Feb 2011. ArchDaily. Accessed 22 May 2012. <http://www.archdaily.com/114761>

Comments (25)
Tweets (43)
Links to this entry (2)

gc says:

This project is breathtaking! Good job!

# February 28, 2011 at 13:31

Trevdor says:

Well done, would love to visit some day.

# February 28, 2011 at 13:44

mm2919 says:

superbe,
le sophistiqué du dessin,
la réalisation brute,
on anticipe un espace dur, difficile d’accès mais serein, mérité, solitaire et silencieux.

chapeau pour cette démonstration.

# February 28, 2011 at 14:03

andrew says:

star wars..cool! :) [thumbs up]

# February 28, 2011 at 14:31

pl543 says:

The shape is reminiscent of Casa da Música by Koolhaas and the interior is reminiscent of Church of Light by Ando. Not a very original design overall.

# February 28, 2011 at 14:36

dana dehghan says:

I agree with pl543. It it beautifull but a copy from Ando and Koolhaas.

# November 19, 2011 at 04:15

musica says:

casa da musica…anyway, it´s a nice building

# February 28, 2011 at 14:57

SumiK says:

@pl543 I like how the author reinterpreted [if THT was the intention at all] in which case there is nothing wrong with that approach too, because you are reevaluating it the given context with it own challenges, why isnt that a valid approach to design..?

Other than that.. I liked the concept and project overall.. well executed.

# February 28, 2011 at 15:01

The problem is that I’m not seeing as a reinterpretation so much as I’m seeing as a pastiche of other ideas that are too present in the overall design, instead of serving as a departure point to the design. I’m not saying it isn’t well executed, I’m saying that it’s too dependeant on other buildings conceptually and in terms of form.

# February 28, 2011 at 17:21

Jonathan says:

What about accessibilty?
Cool to see only, in my humble opinion.

# February 28, 2011 at 15:40

abe says:

It’s just a form. Completely uninteresting.

# February 28, 2011 at 15:44

up_today_arch says:

wow… the best… first prize…

# February 28, 2011 at 16:34

Grant says:

The funeral business is pretty prosperous right now in Mexico. Nice way to say farewell to the narcos.

# February 28, 2011 at 20:06

Aleksander says:

The architecture is cut solid

# March 1, 2011 at 03:12

munter roe says:

Best things been on here in a while. The only thing i don’t like are the concrete seats.

Couldn’t get that built in the uk, building control would have a field day.

# March 1, 2011 at 03:28

h.a. says:

too complicated!! this small chapels work better with simple and poetic use of space (ie zumthor’s chapels). with a bit slight rearrangement you could still fit a lift ( ;

# March 1, 2011 at 05:07

Viktor says:

Beautiful and enigmatic… What a great job.

# March 1, 2011 at 20:02

Shajedur Rahman says:

It has a beautiful play of light at the entrance which is missing at the upper floor. the form is very interesting. the two small wall, immediate next to the cross could have been solid to mitigate the distraction.

# March 1, 2011 at 22:52

philip modest schambelan says:

simply love it!!!
love the shape, love the way up, love the reaction to the task and context!!

good work….

# March 3, 2011 at 03:30

eidam says:

did anyone say Koolhaas?

# March 3, 2011 at 05:20

joe says:

It got parts from diffrent projects
the exterior form reminds me of Koolhaas casa da musica
the entry -Peter Zumthor’s chapel
and the interior -Tadao Ando’s chapel
anyway grate re-mix project!!

# March 5, 2011 at 01:14

antonio eustaquio says: