Fragments of the past : contemporary interior design solutions for redesigning historical churches
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2019
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Abstract
"In Brandenburg, there exists a church in almost every village, with most of them having been originally built sometime between the 12th and the 14th centuries. Nowadays, some of these churches are no longer used as places of worship, while others have extended functions. Some have even been dismantled. [...] Since the late 1970s, the Church in Germany has experienced a dramatic loss of membership. [...] In addition to demographic change, the rural exodus of young people plays a major role, especially in Eastern Germany. In Brandenburg, there are countless villages where almost no young families live anymore; as a result, schools are closed and the populations have become outdated. [...] Here, the church has a very special role as a social pivot for the remaining population. It is a location for church services, a parish hall, a meeting place for festivities and gatherings of all kinds, frequently including cultural or political events. This requires premises that are often not available, due to very limited space. Yet, where there is no space for the peoples' requirements, their needs will either be repressed, or they will leave these locations. The Church is trying to resolve this problem. Where church space can be preserved as such, because there is still hope, attempts are made to expand the site's functionality. Community spaces are added, and church space is divided into several functional areas, so as to utilize it for more practical needs and additional purposes. If there is no hope, churches are also desecrated and sold, or they are demolished. [...] The central question that this essay will examine is this precise issue of additional use: Which design strategies that architectural interventions employ can transform centuries old churches into spaces that satisfy the requirements of their communities, yet incorporate and maintain their historical structures? The integration and reuse of historical structures should ultimately result in an advantage for the user."