the primary function of the cathedral is as a place of worship. the cathedral of christ the Light has helped energize the region’s catholic community.
The Omega Window features an image of Christ at the end of time with the Book of Life in one hand and the other hand offering a blessing. The image derives from a twelfth-century romanesque stone statue above the royal Portal of Chartres Cathedral in france. A photograph of that carving was converted by sOM into a massive, pixilated three-dimensional image. rather than using a projection, the image is created by natural light passing through angular, perforated aluminum screens. The sOM Graphic design studio, led by Lonny Israel, conceptualized and implemented this awe-inspiring achievement, collaborating with Neil Katz, AIA, an architect and digital designer in sOM’s New York office. The team used a variety of digital tools, including pattern-generating software usually reserved for producing frit patterns for glass, to generate the algorithm required to compose the image. The final image was created by laser-cutting 94,000 holes of various sizes and densities into the aluminum panels that compose the wall. father Minnihan explains, “We wanted the primary piece of art and focus to be integrated with the structure.” The final product is an arresting image and, for parishioners, a focus of their worship. “The image itself is inseparable from the architecture and light,” says Hartman.
The diocese faced many challenges from parishioners who questioned the new cathedral’s ultimate value. “People wondered why we needed this,” remembers father Minnihan. “My response was, the human spirit needs to be lifted by beauty. If things are just reduced to a utilitarian value, I think we have lost the human spirit.” The diocese views the tangible value of the cathedral in three parts: as a house of worship, as a center for the arts and education, and as a center for outreach that includes a diagnostic health clinic and a legal center. In its short existence, the church has been host to many performingarts events as well. “Historically, cathedrals, such as Notre dame, were schools of the arts. We are trying to maintain that sensibility,” says father Minnihan. regular concerts demonstrate the clear acoustics and bring in many from the local community. “A cathedral like this is a work of optimism,” says Hartman. “You can’t build something without being optimistic about the future. A cathedral is perhaps one of the most optimistic acts that a group can make. It’s not about commercial return; it’s about creating a place of solace, of spiritual renewal, and there can be no more important building in those terms.” a
– “you CAn’T buIld soMeThIng WIThouT beIng oPTIMIsTIC AbouT The fuTure. A CAThedrAl Is PerhAPs one of The MosT oPTIMIsTIC ACTs ThAT A grouP CAn MAke.” 52
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