Church as a meeting place

Church as a heart
of the community

New definition of a Monastery church

The location where the church Klosterkirche Thalbürgel was built has a long and important history. A history that reaches back to the ice age, a soul formed by the lives of the local residents, the potential to become a lively meeting point, a hub of modern life. This location needs to be redefined, a spatial and functional extension, to provide the right setting for all the different events it pays host to. The distinctive architectural character of the building should be reinforced, generating renewed interest and drawing more visitors to visit this special place. SCHMIDHUBER worked closely with the local authorities in Thalbürgel to develop a concept that builds on the church’s special function as a gathering place for the community and lays a new foundation for the future; fertile soil for more creative ideas.

A vision can generate power. It just takes a shared dream and the seeds of an idea to take root. That’s when the inconceivable can become a reality.

Thomas Burkard | Managing Partner at SCHMIDHUBER

Open to all

The church was built in the Romanesque style from 1133 as the minster for a Benedictine monastery, and a community of monks lived and worshipped here until the reformation. Today the church serves as a place of worship for both the Protestant and Catholic diocese, as well as hosting concerts and exhibitions. It plays a crucial role in the region as a multidenominational meeting place, open to people of all faiths. Its active role is a demonstration of the community’s vision – a symbol of openness and an invitation to discussion that must also be represented in the new development’s design

A new church – a new meeting place

The roof of the new structure wraps around the pre-existing building, hanging like a silk scarf ruffled by the wind. Its curves echo the surrounding landscape, offering a counterpoint to the church itself and reinforcing the characteristic elements of the location: the portico, the cloister and the atrium.

Open design

It was a conscious decision to choose a modern visual style in order to open a new, organically formed chapter in the church’s history. The structure is designed in wood, planned and constructed using the latest technology. It’s a new interpretation of a traditional, sustainable raw material. The structure is open to light and air, a blurring of the line between interior and exterior space. These soft borders invite people to step inside and engage in discussion without barriers. And this open design is not purely a communicative decision: by using building materials only in those places where it is absolutely necessary, resource consumption was kept to a minimum.

We considered a number of proposals but ultimately, the young, international design team from SCHMIDHUBER presented a compelling idea that won us over. Thanks to their great commitment and excellent communication, this idea could be developed further by a local team and come to fruition in all its glory.