The Courage of Tenderness

Matisse's chapel in Vence displays the courage it takes to create from tenderness. So much architecture is made from coolness, calculation and brute force. This has its place, but Matisse made a place that welcomes the whispers of the soul. It's a sacred space designed by a wise child. It's the art of a master who explored color and form until everything that wasn't essential was stripped away, leaving only pure, tinted light. In contrast to the dark, womb-chamber cathedrals throughout Europe, this radiant space invites gentleness in to play. The vulnerability, usually hidden in shadowy passages and armored by massive stone walls dances on a raised, glowing altar. Every detail shimmers with innocent openheartedness. This includes the vestments Matisse designed for the clergy here. Instead of the traditional black or brown robes, the artist fashioned ceremonial capes with festive colors and floral motifs reflecting the playful stained glass windows. In a world that celebrates heroic acts of explosive art, the courage to listen to the subtle, yet powerful, murmurs of the heart and the skill to translate that elusive strength into a compelling human sanctuary is astonishing.

Healing Space: New Architecture for an Emerging Culture

This is the first in a series of imagination design projects. It presents a new architecture for the new consciousness emerging in the 21st century. In this design approach, I draw upon ancient wisdom used to design sacred places for thousands of years. At the same time, it reflects innovative technologies that integrate mind, body, soul and nature. One of the core tasks of our time is mending the world broken by dualistic thinking in the scientific age. Splitting life into human and natural, science and art, money and soul has created an unworkable planet. Mending the rift involves reweaving the torn fabric of the earth. With this in mind, the first design of the new architecture is a place for personal renewal and revitalization.

HEALING SPACE

In life, most of us are wounded by illness, the death of a loved one, heartbreak or other incident. If this happens, we often long for a safe place to let go and allow the organic processes of nature and consciousness to mend the shattered circle of our lives. Yet, few places receive mind and body simply. Usually, we are pressured toward a quick cure. Yet, ignoring the soul’s true needs leaves us with an empty image of wholeness. Hidden wounds go untended and genuine balance is never regained. HEALING SPACE explores a design that invites the innate wisdom of the psyche to discover its unique path to remembering wholeness.

UNDERGROUND LEVEL FLOOR PLAN: WOMB SPACE OF RELEASE & VISION

(1) DEPARTURE THRESHOLD The threshold to HEALING SPACE is a jagged gap. It recalls the wounding incident that shatters lives. Pausing at this threshold gap, the power of the wounding force is fully met. Within the watery gash a circular steppingstone offers support for crossing. (2) DESCENT Stone steps lead into the earth, toward the womb of healing. Through downward movement, mind and body surrender to gravity’s pull toward a grounded core. (3) PASSAGE THROUGH CONFLICT At the bottom of the steps, two pillars frame a portal to the paradox of healing. The pillar on the right is carved with images of rebirth such as the sun, flowers and fruit. On the left, a waning crescent moon, withering plants and other images depict the decay, death and release, clearing the way for healing. (4) SURRENDER Passage between the Twin Pillars of Healing leads to an underground womb space. Floor paving depicts a giant serpent, an image of shedding what is worn and dead to reveal what is fresh and vital. Niches within the walls of the circular space provide pockets for surrendering what will clear the way for healing—broken beliefs, emotions, relationships to name a few. (5) PURIFICATION At the center of the space is a pool of warm water. Recessed below the surrounding floor, the pool creates a fluid place where rigid limitations can dissolve and flow into new patterns. (6) SLEEP & DREAMS To the east of the Purifying Pool is a place for resting and dreaming. A bed provides a safe, comfortable place to let go completely and settle in the depths of healing. (7) BURNING Fire is a primal force in cleansing what cannot be washed away or released through rest. A brazier provides a place for symbolically burning away obstacles healing and to transforming dense, dead matter into radiant energy. (8)VISION Release and deep rest clear the way for renewed visions of dwelling in wholeness. West of the central pool, a raised platform offers a place to meditate and cognize healing forms emerging from spacious silence. (9) EMERGENCE Rested and energized by visions of fresh possibilities, the Emergence Portal frames a return from the dark womb of healing. Similar to the Devouring Portal, twin pillars depict images of anticipation and trepidation. (10) ASCENDING From the Emergence Portal, a flight of steps ascends from the inward perspective of the underground space to the broader view at ground level.

GROUND LEVEL FLOOR PLAN: CREATIVE SPACE OF CONNECTION & EXPRESSION

The spectrum of healing includes assimilation and restorative play. This space provides varied opportunities for discovering patterns wanting to be expressed as well as integrating the knowledge of healing. (11) BODY/MIND An area for strengthening the body in connection to the mind through yoga and exercise. (12) CREATIVITY A work surface supports writing, drawing and other artistic exploration. (13) INTEGRATING STORIES A library books relating stories from world cultures about the human journey through healing transformation. A video monitor is provided for watching inspiring and funny stories that encourage healing. (14) NOURISHING A place to site and absorb beautiful melodies, forms, colors, tastes and fragrances of nature. 15) BETWEEN EARTH & SKY Openings in the floor and ceiling connect to the water and darkness below and the sunlight and rain from above.

SKY LEVEL FLOOR PLAN: ALIGNMENT & ORIENTATION

Complete healing includes connecting to the totality of earth and the heavens. The roof of Healing Space offers a place to connect the healing of the body, mind and soul with the wholeness of cosmic spirit. (16) ASCENDING Steps lead from the earth’s boundaries and shadows to the sky’s expansion and light. (17) POLE STARAt the apex of the ascent, a stainless steel instrument, tilted at an angle parallel to the earth’s axis, points toward the pole star. Orientation to this point about which the entire universe appears to rotate enlivens stability within change. (18) SKY VIEWING TERRACE A flat roof offers a platform for unobstructed views of the revitalizing patterns of the sun, moon and stars. Floor paving patterns indicate the direction of sunrises and sunsets on the summer and winter solstices and the equinoxes, marking seasonal transitions. (19) RETURN Steps descend to ground level. (20) REBIRTH Crossing the threshold of wholeness marks the return to world where healing can integrated into daily life.

Architecture by Anthony Lawlor

www.anthonylawlor.com

Architecture Reaches Beyond Shelter

Architecture opens beyond shelter. It does more than shed rain, mark cozy nests and provide square footage for office space. Architecture establishes a place in the world. It roots human beings in the living, breathing Earth while stretching toward the rotations of the stars. Architecture turns the functions of a kitchen into an alchemical studio for transforming raw materials into the food that embodies families and cultures. Its turns a hole in a wall into a portal marking the passages of life or a window framing the unnamable mysteries of space.

In the wrestling dance of spirit and matter architecture reveals the hidden characters of both. A granite stone and an oak tree are totalities within themselves. Yet, becoming participants in the span or an arch or a well-crafted roof beam, the stone and the wood realize dormant powers and forms that change the world by being expressed.

If you're lucky enough to encounter a building today that points beyond its form to a consciousness that eludes description, stop of a moment; appreciate what can come from the desire to reach beyond shelter; sense the connection between your life journey and the journey of those who created this place; sense the long tradition of architects and builders it embodies; and go on your way renewed by what others have created for you and what you might create for other.

Soul Fires at the Core of Dwelling

Primal acts of place-making renew the world. The vital task of caring for the hearth narrates the whole story of creation. In Ireland, the tradition of Smooring the Fire embodies the birth of diversity from the oneness of existence. At the end of the day, the cooking and warming fire is put to rest, but not extinguished in the following ritual. "The embers are spread evenly on the hearth--which is generally in the middle of the hearth--and formed into a circle. This circle is then divided into three equal sections, a small boss being left in the middle. A line of peat is laid between each section, each peat touching the boss, which forms a common center. The first peat is laid down in the name of the God of Life, the second in the name of the God of Peace, the third in the name of the God of Grace. The circle is then covered with ashes sufficient to subdue but not to extinguish the fire, in the name of the Three of Light. The heap, slightly raised in the center, is called 'Tula nan,' the Hearth of the Three. When the smooring operation is complete, the woman closes her eyes, stretches her hand, and softly intones one of the many formulae current for these occasions."

This ritual links the structure of home to the structure of conscious through which we perceive the world. Within the oneness of Being a spark of consciousness awakens to itself. The One appears to become the Three, The Perceiver, The Perceived and The Process of Perception. Every experience in life and architecture is seen through this lens. I (Perceiver) look out (Process of Perception) at the garden of the world (Perceived). How I interpret what I see determine how I shape the world into structures for dwelling. With each perception, I am smooring the fire of of living, tend the hearth of new creation.

Tony's Work in Interior Design Magazine

A house I designed about 10 years is shown in the February issue of Interior Design Magazine. Here's the link:

http://www.interiordesign.net/article/CA6637560.html

The photo depicts the center of a home organized by the principles of vaastu, the science and art of architecture from ancient India. This core of dwelling is called a brahmasthan. It is a hub of silence, about which the daily activities of the house revolve. 

Creating this brahmasthan was one of the great design opportunities in which I've had the good fortune to participate. It is the result of a client who clearly stated his desire for a sacred space, an architect who had studied the principles of sacred space for decades, and a builder with the skills to manifest the intentions and the plans. 

The photo says more than I can put into words. For me, however, this is a little temple. It is embodies the essence of establishing a dwelling place in the world. The stable Earth is reflected in the stone base. Sunlight flooding through the roof invites the wheeling Heavens to animate the dense matter of the building. The wooden pillars recall trees standing between earth and sky. The etched glass mandala in the blue wall expresses the geometries of the soul as it weaves the fabric of existence. The stone base steps up toward the center, calling the imagination to peer into the core of silence. At the heart of this brahmasthan the stone base steps downward, receiving the energies flowing into the house. Here a small fountain revitalizes these energies and re-radiating them to the home. 

LAYERS OF SEEING

One of the lost secrets of architecture is layering. Attempting to craft rooms of simple beauty, designers often reduce spaces to bare essentials. This approach creates elegant harmony, but neglects dimensions of depth that make architecture come alive. 

The mosque in Istanbul shown in this photo makes the point. A single dome would have created an expansive, peaceful sanctuary. By layering dome upon dome, the space pulls your consciousness up and up and up. Yet, the curving layers don't drag your attention toward a single point. The rings of the domes move together like circular ripples of water mingling in a pond. This arrangement pulls the mind free of its grid of facts. It opens to wonder that can't be pinned down.

Most layering is not this elaborate. As you move through your house or apartment, go beyond seeing the walls, windows, furniture and other elements as isolated objects. Look at them as layers of experience tying together your path through the rooms. Notice the shades of color, light and shadow. Touch the layers of textures. Smell the layers of aroma. Listen to the symphony of sounds. The places you inhabit are made of layers that can take you beyond surface appearances into the hidden power of dwelling.

Please share your experiences of layers in nature, imagination and architecture in the comments section below. Enjoy.

CARVING YOUR PLACE

This is a photo of one of the Ellora Cave Temples in India. It's an amazing place where the people added a building by carving away from the earth. They created sacred space by losing solid stone. Imagine the vision of looking at a mountainside and seeing a temple within it. Imagine the tenacity to chip away the rock bit by bit to allow light to penetrate matter. Imagine the moment of stepping back and realizing what could be achieved by human hands. 

Imagine the vision you might find within the obstacles looming before your own life. Open to the power in your hands to chip away, bit by bit, at those obstacles to reveal the life waiting there. 

SACRED SPACE NOW

Allison asked me to write about sacred space. These days, it's an elusive subject. Holy lands can be the sites of unholy bloodshed. A piece of toast with a splotch of melted butter resembling the Madonna can become a holy relic. 

Since the old definitions don't fit, I set out five years ago to discover what sacred place is now. Over 18 months, I traveled to sacred places in the American Southwest, Europe, the Middle East and India. I found sacred places everywhere, from tiny niches in backstreet walls of 3rd world slums to glorious temples rising from pristine mountaintops. I saw people worshiping in front of video screens and making offerings to the sky. 

To say that sacred space is impossible to define is both true and a copout. To say that is personal is too easy. After countless miles of travel, meditations is all sorts of places, drawings, diagrams, discussions, etc. I've come to this—sacred space is a physical structure that opens to what is beyond the physical. It is a defined boundary that opens to what cannot be defined. 

A primal example of this is the Pantheon in Rome. The basic diagram is a dome with a circular opening at the top. On sunny days, a shaft of sunlight explodes through the opening. During thunder storm, rain pours in. What could be simpler? Yet, the precise shape of dome and circular opening break through the limits of conventional experience. Mundane perception is transcended. The intangible shimmers into the tangible. 

Pictured at the beginning of this post is the new Cathedral of Christ the Light in Oakland, California. It's a modern sacred space that draws on timeless design forms to point to the formless. What was your response when you first looked at this image? Did you wonder what it was? Were you drawn to go there?

In future posts, I'll talk about this masterpiece of modern design and about specific techniques for making, perceiving and inhabiting sacred space. Tell me what you think.