Adam Lacina (1st year) - Chapel Storsand after 42 years - winner JFK 06

5. assignment for the 1st year from the studio of Ing.arch. Jiří Buček

Theme: A so-called blue catalog was published for the exhibition of historical Sial in Olomouc, pages 106-111 are dedicated to the Catholic chapel in Norwegian Storsand. Seven designs from spring 1969 are signed by Baum, Eisler, Hubáček, Korner, Masák, Špikla, and Švec. The chapel studies were the first exercise of the Sial Nursery, architecture theorists particularly note the prevailing machinistic thinking. How has architectural thinking about the task changed in 42 years?

Assignment: Design a Catholic chapel for the environment of Storsand on the coast of the Norwegian Oslofjord. There is no clear preference for an exact location; a site on the north-south oriented coast of Storsand is assumed, and the chapel can be placed on the shore as well as in the water, with the solution left to the author's approach.
The chapel, serving for worship or meditation, should have a capacity of 25-30 seats, a place for chamber organs, and a sacristy is not necessary.

Solution: I understand the chapel as a place of prayer and tranquility, where one should feel closer to God. Therefore, the chapel itself is simplified as much as possible to not obscure His omnipresence. The floor plan is derived from the layout of traditional Norwegian wooden churches. The material used is local stone (granite), which withstands the ages but is also shaped by the forces of nature. The chapel is accessible only during low tide. At high tide, it is underwater, and only the cross on the rock-altar is visible. Water acts as a purifying element washing away sins. Thus, the entire chapel is part of the cycle of nature, but it should also be eternal like faith...