Fuzhou Huaxiang Church: A Harmonious Blend of Heritage and Modernity

Dirk U. Moench's Award-Winning Design Reflects the New Generation of Chinese Christians

The design of the Fuzhou Huaxiang Church was inspired by the congregation's desire to preserve their heritage while reflecting their current status as active, visible Christians. The church, which started as a minority of elderly believers hiding in a backstreet, has now transformed into a vibrant community of mostly young believers. This transformation is mirrored in the architectural design, which takes the historical church as its starting point.

The church, surrounded by newly built malls and high-rises, adopts the role of an urban mediator, harmonizing modern city and ancient architecture while complementing the old church's skyline. Its pitched roofs serve as elevated amphitheatres for open-air services and as escapes from the city's hustle and bustle. These roofs are more than just an echo of ancient tradition; they are a reflection of the vision of a new generation of Christians in a changing China.

The facade of the church is finished in granite gravel, a counterstatement to the irresponsive curtain walls encircling it on all sides. This gravel was tumbled down to smooth pebbles and applied to the walls using a pebble dash technique once typical for the local architecture. In a religious sense, this infinitude of pebbles represents the dual nature of the word Church, which refers not only to the building, but also to the sum of all individual Christians.

Despite the challenges imposed on the project, including functional and spatial requirements conflicting with height and area restrictions imposed by the heritage authority, the design was approved in 2016 and finished in April 2018. The building, hardly visible from the streets due to surrounding obstacles, has become a popular hang-out for the young and serves as a platform from which locals and tourists enjoy a free view onto the city's historic district.

The Fuzhou Huaxiang Church is a testament to the power of design in reflecting and shaping cultural evolution. It stands as a symbol of the new generation of Chinese Christians, their desire to preserve their heritage, and their active contribution to their community. The design, which harmoniously blends the old with the new, serves as a reminder of the transformative power of architecture in shaping our perception of the world around us.