miralles tagliabue EMBT's design for san giacomo church nears completion in ferrara, italy

a sculptural church designed by miralles tagliabue EMBT is taking shape in the italian city of ferrara. the scheme, which won first place in a design competition back in 2012, seeks to strengthen community identity and is articulated by flowing, organic forms.

image © mattia pedrazzi

san giacomo church and parish center  is situated on a plot enclosed by slim trees, which conceal the building and create an intimate environment around it. the concept behind miralles tagliabue EMBT‘s design is to establish a new fulcrum for the local community, whereby residents can gather and socialize. to support this concept, the building is designed to have a welcoming presence and the design team has achieved this with curved walls and undulating roofs, which also contrast with the robust and compact materiality of ferrara’s traditional architecture. 

image © paolo fassoli

the organic architecture is also designed to connect with the city. the building is positioned on both a visual and spiritual axis with the new bridge and the city beyond the river, but access is achieved via two lateral axes that join the design of the square to the church, acting as two open arms to the community.

image © paolo fassoli

image © paolo fassoli

image © paolo fassoli

project info:

project name: san giacomo church

typology: religious

location: ferrara, italy

client: complesso parrocchiale san giacomo

architect: benedetta tagliabue – miralles tagliabue EMBT

project director: joan callís

design team: gabriele rotelli, katrina varian, valentina noris, agustina mascetti, angelos siampakoulis, bárbara ruschel lorenzoni, cj rogers, ernesto lopez, guido aybar maino, grant mc cormick, gonzalo peña, irene botas cal, jiyoun park, lauren lochry, lorenzo trucato, marta ruiz benito, oscar lopez

collaborators: enzo cucchi (artist), vincenzo gatti (liturgist)

gross floor area: 19,375 ft2 (1,800 m2) + 6,458 ft2 (600 m2) landscape

date: 2012 – in progress

photography: paolo fassoli, mattia pedrazzi