Monday, April 29, 2013

How Churches Can Offer Inspiration To The Modern Home

By Chris Latham


The design and dcor of churches around the world is at the very least inspiring. With globally renowned artists of the past and present being employed to deliver their very best work on some truly magnificent masterpieces in existence today, they are a prime - although surprising - place in which to get some new ideas and insights into modern design concepts.

Let's start with the concept of church lighting. This is an absolutely crucial part of a church both with regards to creating the right tone and ambience for visitors, and also with regards to symbolism. The candles typically used in churches such as tea lights and pillar candles are now so popular they're commercially used as well, in part due to the magical ability candles have to change, make and break a mood instantly with their ethereal beauty.

The next point for discussion is colour. The neutral, plain and pure colour of white is most certainly popular in and out of holy buildings! Modernistic homes are minimalist in their design and plain in colour and white is tremendously popular in commercial design today, proving that the church has got it right. Also in use in addition to the colour of white as a symbol of purity are blues, purples and gold's. These have their individual meanings and their own symbolism but what they all have in common is their richness and vividness. Considering the sheer number of colours in existence today, all with their own uniqueness and beauty, it really is astonishing how church colours have successfully made the transition into modern living rooms the world over.

The decoration in churches is ornate to say the least, for this reason they often keep to a minimalist theme with their main colour scheme opting for neutral colours so that the elaborate statues, ornaments and other decorations stand out and don't look too busy. In addition to this, as a sacred place the final chosen colour for a church should be respectful and so bright and vibrant colours - although beautiful and appropriate for other situations - may not be suitable and appealing to those visiting a church. In order to cater for the myriad of personalities coming in to church for their sanctuary, a neutral colour allowing them to focus on prayer and the reasons why they are there is often the best choice.

Functionality is crucial to get right and adequate space to move around in is of paramount importance within the church building. When a priest gives mass those in attendance need to be able to get up and down the aisles and the church needs to be able to contain a lot of people too so of course, be adequately sized. People of all ages and abilities visit church so catering for a wide demographic of people when looking at functionality is absolutely key.

Finally we come on to warmth! Churches are notorious for being cold; this could be in large part due to the openness of their design and their sheer size. Numerous cold and uncomfortable churches have been depicted through various movies and television shows throughout time - so a little warmth would certainly not go amiss.

Although not a typical type of place to look for to gain inspiration churches use a lot of themes that have successfully made the move into residential homes across the country - so pay attention, you might find something you like.




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