From real to abstract, from abstract to matter.

This work reflects on the architectural design’s process of a parish centre for São Miguel do Mato, Arouca. It’s a new space to support religious activities.

This work explores the architectural design and its inherent process. The study of the parish centre takes place in an inter-relational way: it wanders between concrete themes - site, program and project - and more abstract fields - such as architectural theory or the matters of the spirituality today. Nowadays, sacredness is side by side with the greater secularization of societies and there is a lack of spaces capable of hosting the spirituality that is currently practiced. However, parish centres are often treated as constructions whose importance focus only on their functional efficiency. The transcendental atmosphere - the teasing of the extraordinary and the unexpected - which is often seen in the churches, is no longer applied in the catechesis rooms. The commissioned project aims to build a parish centre where it intends to accommodate multiple organizations, with special emphasis on the catechesis group and a multipurpose room, where large meetings or events can take place. Architecturally, it’s desired an authentic building in its relationship with the program and site, which has potentialities and weaknesses that must be recognized. In addition, the Casa dos Mordomos (an existing building), is used as a motto for the design practice. The building’s shape is a longitudinal volume, which sets the entire program in the lower level, releasing the roof area (at the same level as churchyard) for an Open Sky Chapel – which complements the public religious space and allows the religious practice by anyone at any time. Therefore, the design concept is based on the idea that the building would be like a "massive block of stone" interspersed by a lighter and transparent "glass box". These logics should be felt even from the interior, offering its users a deeper, richer and more diverse spiritual experience. This project is an opportunity to inquire about a theme barely explored in architecture and to lay down some guidelines for future reflections on the design of this type of buildings. São Miguel do Mato will now have a different type of facilities: a new place to listen, to pray, to be connected with God.