White and light

Unique: to build a new church at a time when the reuse of redundant church buildings is becoming an increasingly serious task. In 2012, the Evangelical Brotherhood in Amsterdam Zuidoost did just that. Over the preceding years, members of the congregation had raised the necessary funds themselves. The unprecedentedly modest budget is not reflected in the final result. Here on Karspeldreef is a sturdy, white, modern church building – only recognizable as such because of the tower.

One of the key components of the client’s brief was the significance of light and the colour white in the liturgy. Consequently, these two aspects dominate the church’s interior. From the entrance, the ceiling increases in height to nine metres, with a view of a thirteen-metre-high white rear wall. This wall receives indirect daylight from a roof light that extends the entire width of the interior space. Outside, when the interior is illuminated, the tower also functions as a beacon. The colour white is continued in the 550 white seats in the nave and on the balcony, creating a lucid, almost abstract interior, particularly when the congregation, who also wear white, is present.

The stone chosen for the exterior is yellowish white and is laid in an irregular pattern. The area around the church has been laid out with raised greenery beds, surrounded by stone borders that can also serve as seating – a continuation of the function of spaces such as the restaurant, assembly rooms and other meeting areas. On the street, the glazed front above the main entrance radiates light: a ‘welcome’ sign to the neighbourhood. (ARCAM/ MB)