A sanctuary between the landscape and the community
In Hillerhausen, a small rural village in central Germany, a modest structure stands on a gentle hill. Surrounded by expansive farmland, it looks quietly over the village below. Slightly removed from its surroundings, the building carries a subdued sense of calm and restraint. This is a chapel built for local residents. Without a spire or a monumental entrance, it sets aside overt religious authority and instead opens itself to people and the surrounding landscape.
The architecture is composed of twelve sandstone columns, each six meters tall, supporting a simple roof. Arranged in a soft circular formation, the columns form an open enclosure that suggests shelter without enclosure. Their configuration recalls the gesture of two hands brought together, while remaining grounded in structural clarity rather than symbolism. Through the gaps between the columns, views of the village and surrounding fields unfold continuously. Light, wind, and shifting weather pass freely through the space, becoming integral to how the chapel is experienced.
Inside, the floor is covered with wood chips, echoing the texture of the surrounding earth. The openness of the structure allows light and air to move uninterrupted, dissolving any clear boundary between interior and exterior. Time spent here follows the rhythms of the seasons rather than those of a conventional interior, reinforcing a direct connection to the surrounding landscape.
The chapel does not prescribe a specific religious practice. Seating arranged face-to-face supports both solitary reflection and quiet gatherings among neighbors. The space adapts easily, shaped less by fixed program than by the presence and interactions of those who occupy it.
This modest structure is the result of a collective effort by the village community. Developed through a series of workshops, the chapel was built with the direct involvement of local residents, whose contributions are embedded in the construction itself. Over time, these shared actions have shaped the chapel into a place of common ground—one that quietly demonstrates how architecture can mediate between people, landscape, and everyday life.
Project: Open Chapel / Location: Hillershausen, Waldeck-Frankenberg, Germany / Architect: Christoph Hesse Architects / Collaborator: Local Community, Gross & Wilke
Client: Bergkapelle Hillershausen e.V. / Use: community space / Gross floor area: 50m² / Materials: sandstone, wood, steel, plants / Construction: 2022-2024
Completion: 2024 / Photograph: ©Laurian Ghinitoiu (courtesy of the architect); courtesy of the architect
