Responding to local environments
“Very importantly, architecture explores the relationship between people and land.” This is a favorite mantra of Liao Wei-li’s, and connections can indeed be traced between his church designs and the places where these buildings are situated.
Light of Christ Salvation Church in Taichung’s North District is located in a place where residential properties mix with commercial premises. The first four levels of this church have a facade of unpretentious béton brut. Above, a cantilevered passageway protrudes from the main building, providing a link to an ark-shaped structure. Clad in dark-gray titanium–zinc sheets, this upper part of the building may remind us of the illegal rooftop structures common in Taiwan, but it is in fact where worship takes place. Referring to his design, Liao tells us that for him Taichung is a city that lacks context, and he has taken up the challenge of helping a building show its identity in a modern city like this. Situated at a road junction, the church gives expression to the architect’s experimental thinking: If we look at it from a distance, we will notice that the main worship space, which has the appearance of an added rooftop structure, actually blends in perfectly with the vibrant, if somewhat cluttered, streetscape, even while it displays its own character. The architecture attests to the “identity” that Liao wishes to bring out.
Jiaoxi Presbyterian Church in Yilan also illuminates how a building can resonate with its local environment. “For me, Jiaoxi is a hybrid town, which means it looks both urban and rural,” Liao says. The site faces the four-lane Provincial Highway 9, but at its rear are the narrow, winding lanes that are characteristic of Jiaoxi. Rejecting the ponderous rigidity of a single cubic building, the architect has used four smaller structures—apparently randomly placed on the ground—to support the main worship space on the second floor. The space between these first-floor structures opens up the site to locals who live in the back lanes.
Looking at Deguang Presbyterian Church in Tainan’s East District from an adjacent lane, we’re likely to be attracted by its aura, which recalls the old-world gentility of local literati. Liao explains that he borrowed the concept of the tabernacle from the Old Testament to design this church. The building is screened by colorful grillwork. From a distance, you would think it is wrapped in thin muslin. “This ‘double skin’ design,” Liao tells us, “is a response to the scorching weather and the blazing sun in Tainan, assisting the movement of air between the outside and the inside of the building.” Liao has also introduced Tainan’s characteristic back-lane atmosphere into this church. By using the grillwork to create semi-open corridors, he is able to balance outdoor and indoor temperatures. Graced with light and breezes, the building seems to be integrated into nature.