Tomas Ghisellini Architects Reveals Cinisi Church Competition Entry

A few weeks ago, we featured Andrea Maffei Architects’ entry to the Redemptoris Mater Church competition to design a new church complex in Cinisi, Italy. Now, Tomas Ghisellini Architects has unveiled their entry, titled Living Stones, which gets its shape from a series of steles that surround the complex.

Tomas Ghisellini Architects Reveals Cinisi Church Competition Entry - Column
Courtesy of Tomas Ghisellini Architects

Living Stones is conceptually made up of “a large family of wiry stems, like a cloud of souls, a crowd of people huddled together,” that aggregate around a center core, the body of the church. These stems are not only aesthetic, but also serve practical purposes, as “chimneys, support to luminaries and radio, fixing for suspended canopies or mobile scenarios, exposition of Christian symbols, furnishing for the open air spaces, [and] microclimate control tools.”

Courtesy of Tomas Ghisellini Architects

Between the stems, a small village of buildings house classrooms, a mini guesthouse, and the parish hall, all of which are connected by various common spaces.

Section of baptistry

Between the church and other buildings, a long garden is symbolic of the Garden of Gethsemane, with scattered olive trees representing the Passion of Christ.

Learn more about the project here.

  • Architects

  • Location

    Cinisi PA, Italy
  • Architect in Charge

    Tomas Ghisellini
  • Design Team

    Alice Marzola
  • Collaborators

    Lucrezia Alemanno, Andrea Andreotti, Nicola Cataldo, Alessio Orlando
  • Client

    CEI-Conferenza Episcopale Italiana, Arcidiocesi di Monreale
  • Area

    8755.0 sqm
  • Project Year

    2015
  • Photographs

    Courtesy of Tomas Ghisellini Architects
  • Location

    Cinisi PA, Italy
  • Project Year

    2015
  • Photographs

  • Area

    8755.0 m2

News via Tomas Ghisellini Architects.

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Project location

Address:Cinisi PA, Italy

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Location to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.
About this office
Cite: Sabrina Santos. "Tomas Ghisellini Architects Reveals Cinisi Church Competition Entry" 18 Oct 2015. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/775391/tomas-ghisellini-architects-reveals-cinisi-church-competition-entry> ISSN 0719-8884

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