Fallen Church
project: architecture, reconstruction
design: public competition, 2021
place: Grottole (IT)
size: 950 m2
team:
Eva Štrocholcová, Filip Sudolský
role: architect
The proposal reimagines Chiesa Diruta (Fallen Church) as a contemporary music and contemplation space, inspired by the ancient concept of Musica Universalis — a silent, harmonic order perceived beyond sound.
The main church volume is intentionally left empty, preserving the power of the void and allowing music, silence, and atmosphere to inhabit the space freely. This openness enables the church to be experienced both as an outdoor concert hall and as a place for quiet reflection, where historical layers remain fully perceptible.
New additions are introduced as light, permeable fragments embedded in the surrounding roof landscape of the town. Open and glazed wooden structures accommodate the operational needs of the complex while subtly signaling its new use. By contrast, these contemporary interventions enhance the mass and presence of the existing stone structure, allowing past and present to coexist in a clear and legible way.