Hermitage. Enclave of Prayer.

The subject of the Project is a complex of buildings forming a prayer center. The Project refers to spiritual recluse retreats consisting in a12-day solitude period, when the participants will pray and contemplate the Ten Commandments and the Love Commandment. The Hermitage consist of 12 individual retreat cells, a common chapel and a monastery.

I made this project because I interested in sacral and concrete architecture. I wanted to measure myself with designing the untypical religious centre. The Project refers to spiritual recluse retreats consisting in a12-day solitude period, when the participants will pray and contemplate the Ten Commandments and the Love Commandment. The character of a reclusive life means - first of all - being alone, whereas spiritual exercises are traditionally conducted in groups. The aim of the Project was to combine the two ways of spiritual renewal, which resulted in 12 individual retreat cells, a common chapel and a monastery. The chapel is situated inside a flooded excavation site. The building is designed on the south-north axis, it is a cube-shaped monumental structure with an altar in the centre, facing east. The Monastery is the service building, constituting the eastern part of the whole complex. The cube-shaped concrete structure with a patio is inspired by the design of traditional monasteries. The individual retreat cells are designed on the Latin cross plan and refer to the Ten Commandments respectively. Every day the hermits move on to the next cell, where they sleep and contemplate. Apart from a bedroom and a toilet, in most of the cells there are meditation niches. The architectural form of each retreat cell ambiguously refers to the contents of the Ten Commandments, thus allowing the hermits their own interpretation of Faith. Starting from the cells, the chapel and the monastery follow the design. The unadorned architecture only provides a background for meditation. In each and every place in the Hermitage, man must be aware of the fact that his or her existence is a continuous pursuit of excellence. I wanted the Project to be an enclave of silence among buildings that are in harmony with the rocky surroundings, where architecture becomes a turning point in man’s search for God and Self.\nI did this project to show the unusual approach to sacral architecture.