God's own ppl THREAD DEC 20-26 - Page 5

The ten meter structure is made of 100 stacked layers and 2000 columns of steel plates, positioned in such a way as to allow visitors to almost walk through the walls. According to the point of perspective, the church can be perceived either as a traditional church structure, yet with the change of perspective the seemingly solid walls seem to disband before one's eyes in the landscape. An equally perplexing image can be perceived when one looks out to the landscape from the surrounding countryside which is redefined by abstract lines of the church's architecture. The play of light and shadow is another interesting aspect which is only perceived when the viewer is in the church. During different times of the day, the church interior changes, according to the position of the sun and the direction of the sun light.

The play of light and the shadows creates a feeling of supremacy, spirituality and of something supernatural conveying religious emotionalism.

The church design is based on the architecture of a vast number of churches in the region. What makes it strikingly different is the use of horizontal plates; the concept of the traditional church is now transformed into a transparent object of art. But what about the material used for the construction? The application of steel – a rather bold material – metaphorically makes a statement about the bold relationship of church and religion in the Netherlands. According to the architects, the amount of church goers is constantly decreasing; the churches themselves are falling into disuse more and more often, therefore the future of these emptying and abandoned churches is a current issue among several artists.

With this information in mind the architects in cooperation with Z33 named this project "Reading between the Lines" – to perceive