University Church (Kiel)
_(45940388621).jpg) The triangular university church with a bell tower on the west ring as the prelude to the CAU university forum |
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| Basic data | |
| Denomination | evangelical |
| place | Kiel , Germany |
| Christian Albrechts University in Kiel | |
| Building history | |
| Client | Karl Dietrich Erdmann |
| architect | Herbert Weidling , Erhart Kettner |
| Building description | |
| inauguration | November 28, 1965 |
| Architectural style | Modern |
| Furnishing style | brutalism |
| Construction type | Sermon Church |
| Function and title | |
| 54 ° 20 '14.1 " N , 10 ° 7' 25.8" E | |
The university church on Kiel's Westring is one of the few university churches in Germany built after the Second World War and was inaugurated in 1965.
history
Since the founding of the Christian-Albrechts-Universität in 1665, the Heiliggeistkirche , built in the 14th century , the church of the Franciscan monastery founded by Adolf IV in the city center of Kiel, has been the university church. Rebuilt at the end of the 19th century, it was destroyed in an Allied bombing raid on December 13, 1943, as was the monastery. Only the cloister and the tower stump were preserved and were integrated into the Kieler Kloster student residence .
For the 300th anniversary of the university, the new church was completed in 1965 according to plans by the Kiel architects Herbert Weidling and Erhart Kettner . The construction was financed by the Bauverein Universitätskirche Kiel e. V., which was largely initiated in 1959 by professors from Kiel.
legal form
The university church belongs to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern Germany . The state of Schleswig-Holstein appoints one of the professors of the theological faculty as university preacher in agreement with the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church. For the administration of the church is not a church council , but a church committee composed of university staff in charge.
architecture
In the 1960s, a large number of individual buildings were built on the university campus. The university church forms an exciting ensemble with the university high- rise (1964), the auditorium maximum (1965–1969) and the library (1966), in which the individual buildings look like large independent sculptures. By moving the top of the building out in front of the building line of the three-storey brick-facing block perimeter development, the University Church on Westring confidently forms the prelude to the University Forum. The church itself is characterized by a clear, reduced formal language and, with its translucence and lightness, is reminiscent of its model, the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin.
The basic shape of the church is the shape of the triangle, which can be found in the floor plan, side walls and the colorful glass windows. From the outside, the triangular building is reminiscent of a sail, in which the reference to the maritime atmosphere of the state capital is anchored. The architects wanted the triangle to be understood as a symbol for the spirit of science. For the worshiper it can also be a symbol for the Trinity of God .
Interior
The church interior is determined by the colorful glass window fronts, in whose triangular structure central symbols of Christianity can be rediscovered ( Christ monogram , Ichthys , Alpha-Omega), but also the Star of David as a reference to Judaism.
Cross of nails
A cross of nails made of nails from Coventry Cathedral , which was destroyed by German bombs in November 1940 and handed over to the rector and theologian Heinrich Rendtorff after the war, is attached to the epistle .
Fly I and Fly II
The altar is framed by two messengers, Fly I and Fly II , on loan from the artist Jan Koblasa , who taught at the Muthesius Art College in Kiel .
triptych
The triptych behind the pulpit designed by Britta Tiedemann takes up the colors of the church and the triangular shapes of the glass windows. The drawn in and recognizable in the outer form of the triptych Greek letters Alpha and Omega refer to the biblical confession that Christ is “the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” ( Rev 22:13 EU ) .
Golgotha
The foyer of the church is characterized by the large Golgotha tapestry by the artist Ekkehart Kaschel . As a counterpoint to the church space defined by triangles, it fits into the entrance area made of bricks with its clearly structured square shape. It contains elements of the entire story of Christ's Passion (crown of thorns, temple curtain, three crosses, etc.), but also of the Easter message.
organ
The organ was built in 1969 by the organ building workshop Alfred Führer and has the following disposition on two manuals and pedal:
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use
During the lecture period, the university church services take place every Sunday . In addition, the church is regularly used for offers by the Protestant student community, practical exercises in the theological faculty and concerts.
Nicknames
It is popularly known as the prayer launch pad due to its haunting design .
Motif
A depiction of the university church was used as a motif on the 1998 Christmas mug in Kiel .
literature
- Anna Minta: Sacred architecture on the Kiel campus: concepts and conflicts . In: Christiana Albertina . Issue 72, 2011, ISSN 0578-0160 , p. 5-19 .
Web links
- Description ( memento of June 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) by Prof. Dr. Pure Preul