situated in the japanese city of isahaya, KEI SASAKI / INTERMEDIA has conceived the ?konkokyo church? to provide a place of worship, a residence and a meeting space for believers. given the client?s brief to design a building that can be adapted to accommodate a range of functions, the concept behind the project began by first forming the church in the center of the scheme and then attaching various rooms that can be connected by movable partitions.

all images © kai nakamura
 
 
the center of the building is home to the worshipping space itself, which is articulated by an exposed timber ceiling and a more than double-height volume. in this room, the architects have employed the use of a traditional japanese construction technique ? a wooden lattice ? that is shaped as the symbol of the konkokyo religion. in addition to creating a decorative and symbolic element, the pattern provides shielding from solar radiation while also functioning as a ?transparent anti-seismic wall?, which has been confirmed by a performance verification test.
the church in the center is surrounded by a traditional japanese construction technique ? a wooden lattice that is shaped as the symbol of konkokyo religion
 
 
from the church, other rooms can be accessed thanks to the implementation of movable partitions, making it possible to join several areas together. in keeping with the brief and the generous spirit of the konkokyo religion, this design affords the flexibility to host large event...