The Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, United States

January 06, 2011 Category: Public Buildings, Religion

The Cathedral of Christ the Light designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP is located in Oakland, United States. As its name suggests, the Cathedral of Christ the Light draws on the tradition of light as a sacred phenomenon. Through its poetic introduction, indirect daylight ennobles modest materials — primarily wood, glass and concrete. Triangular aluminium panels form the petal-shaped Alpha Window, which diffuses light 100 feet above the Cathedral’s entrance. The Omega Window resonates with the surrounding structure metaphorically and physically through its experimental use of light. The strength and legibility of the image itself is affected by the brightness of light — the ephemeral image fades or reveals itself depending upon the day’s qualities of light. At night, the image is visible on the exterior façade and acts like a beacon in the city. The Omega window re-imagines a 12th-century depiction of Christ from the façade of Chartres Cathedral in France, creating a visual link to early Christendom within a contemporary setting and fulfilling a request from the Oakland Diocese for a direct physical connection to the Church’s traditions through a work of art.

The Cathedral of Christ the Light design by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill