Resurrection Chapel

LP architektur - Gemeinde Straß im Attergau, Austria - 2020

Key words: Atmosphere, Concrete, Construction, Facade, Gravel, Light, Materiality

Chapel EXTERIOR - Photography: © Albrecht Imanuel Schnabel

The Resurrection Chapel in Straß demonstrates how minimal intervention and material clarity can transform a disused gravel pit into a sacred and civic landmark. Its siting at the edge of the slope, defined by a concrete bracket, establishes a new point of orientation in the landscape while marking the chapel as both destination and threshold. The spatial journey is deliberately choreographed: visitors pass through a modest forecourt, enter an anteroom, and are then redirected before emerging into the main chapel space, an upward-striving volume that contrasts openness with intimacy.

The architecture relies on reduction—both in form and materiality—to cultivate an atmosphere of pause and reflection. Concrete, combined with larch and spruce, shapes a tactile and honest environment, while the interplay of vertical façades, horizontal interior slats, and controlled daylight dissolves the weight of the walls, producing a luminous and contemplative quality. This stripped-back approach avoids overt symbolism, instead allowing constructional clarity to carry spiritual resonance.

Functionally, the chapel serves a dual purpose: it is sacred yet inclusive, accommodating non-denominational worship as well as cultural events. Critically, while the minimalism risks austerity, its strength lies in creating an identity rooted in simplicity, natural light, and place-making, offering the community both retreat and gathering space.

“The purpose of a chapel seems simple, but its design interpretation is diverse. From the classic design language to the architectural avant-garde, people try to break out of the standardised everyday life and ask questions. Questions that cannot only be answered by the location and function alone, but rather by an individual examination of the idea of a “higher order”. The Chapel of the Resurrection is my answer to an approach to architecture. Architecture in an unvarnished way, honest and modest in construction and materiality, self-confident in expression and unmistakable in its identity.” - Tom Lechner