The Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich am Rhein is one of the most original German church designs of the second half of the 20th century. Its form attracts attention with its sculptural composition and innovative approach to the liturgical space. The building, designed by Dieter Georg Baumewerd, is an expressive architectural response to the changes initiated by the Second Vatican Council.
The architecture and form of the church
The Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich am Rhein, Germany, sometimes referred to by locals as the ‘six concrete mushrooms’, stands out from other churches with its futuristic, sculptural form. The building surrounds an extensive square planted with plane trees, complemented by seven stelae. The structure rests on concrete columns supporting fan-shaped roofs of varying heights. The wall surfaces are made of broken sheets of concrete and glass, which bring light into the interior while creating an impression of lightness throughout the elaborate structure.
Church in Emmerich am Rhein – historical context
In the 1950s, the Leegmeer district in Emmerich began to develop rapidly. In response to the growing needs of the faithful, the parish administration of St. Aldegunda Parish decided to establish a new parish community. Father Lambert Brimmers became its first parish priest. Following the purchase of a plot of land, an architectural competition for a new church was announced. It was won by Dieter Georg Baumewerd, the youngest of the participants. Construction began in 1964 and the consecration of the church took place two years later at Pentecost. In 1989, a bell tower designed by the same architect was built next to the church. After the reorganisation of the parish structures in Emmerich, the church became a branch church of St Christopher’s parish.
The interior of the church and the modern liturgy
The interior of the church was designed on a square plan around a centrally located altar. The space is divided by mushroom-shaped roofs of different heights, arranged over an irregular plan based on triangles. Large glazings connect the sacred space to the surroundings, opening it up to light and the church greenery. The altar has been divided according to Vatican II. One part is for the proclamation of the Word of God, the other for the celebration of the Eucharist. Both are made of Carrara marble and set in the form of two connected wings.
Church in Emmerich am Rhein – furnishings
The interior design is based on a collaboration with artists representing various strands of post-war sacred art. The walls of a total area of 640 square metres are covered with painted strips of raw canvas by Fred Thieler, a representative of German Informel. Thieler also created an abstract Stations of the Cross. The liturgical elements, including the crucifix and candlestick, were designed by Waldemar Kuhn. The cross measures seven metres high and nine metres wide and was made from steel waste. Its form symbolises victory over death and human imperfection. The tabernacle was created in the goldsmith’s workshop of Wilhelm Polders in Kevelaer, while the baptismal font is a design by Alo Kröger. In 1996, the Karl Schuke company from Berlin built the church’s massive organ consisting of 1,594 pipes.
A place in Germany’s sacred landscape
The Church of the Holy Spirit in Emmerich am Rhein is a very interesting example of Brutalist sacred architecture of the 1960s. The design combines post-conciliar liturgical principles with an expressive form. Dieter Georg Baumewerd’s work remains one of the region’s most recognisable churches today thanks to its original massing and innovative approach to space.
Source: sosbrutalism.com, denkmalpflege.lvr.de
Also read: Architecture | Sacred architecture | Monument | Germany | Modernism | Concrete
