TDT
tdt_shrine temple
The temple is positioned along the parish’s pilgrimage route, connecting the cathedral, the temple, and the surrounding water landscape to form a sacred north–south axis. Visitors progress through a carefully choreographed sequence of spatial experiences: from the enclosed cathedral, to the open landscape, to the compact and introverted temple, before finally arriving at an open natural setting beyond. This alternating rhythm of enclosure and openness reinforces both movement and the symbolic extension of the sacred axis toward nature.
Although the temple appears solid and restrained from the outside, its interior opens dramatically through a large sanctuary frame facing the water and greenery along the northern edge of the site. The surrounding water is conceived as an extension of the architecture, while the landscape itself becomes a larger “green sanctuary” embracing the building. This relationship recalls humanity’s earliest spiritual perception of nature as a sacred presence, while also establishing a modest dialogue between the temple and the existing church through carefully controlled scale, height, and visual relationships.
The project employs a system of local symbols. The large tiled roof evokes the village communal house, and the overall scale reflects traditional rural architecture. The symbolic relationship of heaven–earth–human is expressed through the building’s composition: the base (earth), the occupied interior (human), and the prominent roof (heaven), whose expressive timber structure reflects traditional Vietnamese craftsmanship while emphasizing an upward spiritual aspiration.
Brick and timber are used in a restrained, vernacular manner. Stone recovered from the foundation of the former church forms the pedestal of the saint’s statue, honoring the martyrs as the foundation of the Vietnamese Catholic Church, while traditional Christian symbols such as the Cross and the figure of Christ remain integral to the space.
All of these symbolic elements are embedded within a Western pseudo-dipteral temple plan. Rather than being determined solely by function or structure, the project treats symbolism and polysemy as the primary design framework. This layered symbolic system reduces rigid formal prescriptions while recalling the cultural ambiguity within Vietnamese religious consciousness, as described by Professor Trần Quốc Vượng.
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The temple is positioned along the parish’s pilgrimage route, connecting the cathedral, the temple, and the surrounding water landscape to form a sacred north–south axis. Visitors progress through a carefully choreographed sequence of spatial experiences: from the enclosed cathedral, to the open landscape, to the compact and introverted temple, before finally arriving at an open natural setting beyond. This alternating rhythm of enclosure and openness reinforces both movement and the symbolic extension of the sacred axis toward nature.
Although the temple appears solid and restrained from the outside, its interior opens dramatically through a large sanctuary frame facing the water and greenery along the northern edge of the site. The surrounding water is conceived as an extension of the architecture, while the landscape itself becomes a larger “green sanctuary” embracing the building. This relationship recalls humanity’s earliest spiritual perception of nature as a sacred presence, while also establishing a modest dialogue between the temple and the existing church through carefully controlled scale, height, and visual relationships.
The project employs a system of local symbols. The large tiled roof evokes the village communal house, and the overall scale reflects traditional rural architecture. The symbolic relationship of heaven–earth–human is expressed through the building’s composition: the base (earth), the occupied interior (human), and the prominent roof (heaven), whose expressive timber structure reflects traditional Vietnamese craftsmanship while emphasizing an upward spiritual aspiration.
Brick and timber are used in a restrained, vernacular manner. Stone recovered from the foundation of the former church forms the pedestal of the saint’s statue, honoring the martyrs as the foundation of the Vietnamese Catholic Church, while traditional Christian symbols such as the Cross and the figure of Christ remain integral to the space.
All of these symbolic elements are embedded within a Western pseudo-dipteral temple plan. Rather than being determined solely by function or structure, the project treats symbolism and polysemy as the primary design framework. This layered symbolic system reduces rigid formal prescriptions while recalling the cultural ambiguity within Vietnamese religious consciousness, as described by Professor Trần Quốc Vượng.
Read less
Awards
Silver prize of Vietnamese National
Architecture Award
Finalist of Architizer Awards
Tdt
Function : Templeformartyr
Phase : Built
Genre : Public
Area : 175m2
Year : 2019
Location : Ninhbinh, Vietnam
Photo : Chimnonstudio
Silver prize of Vietnamese National
Architecture Award
Finalist of Architizer Awards
Tdt
Function : Templeformartyr
Phase : Built
Genre : Public
Area : 175m2
Year : 2019
Location : Ninhbinh, Vietnam
Photo : Chimnonstudio