Light is the fundamental connecting force of the universe. The Bahá’í Temple for South America, designed by Hariri Pontarini Architects, employs both translucent stone and the newest glass technology as the means of generating and manifesting both the physiological and spiritual delights of natural light embodied in architecture. Set against the stirring background of the Andean mountain range, the new Temple is to be a crystallizing of light-as-expression, an evanescent structure of white alabaster and glass: a place of pure luminescence. During the day, it is the soft undulating alabaster and glass skin of the Temple which forms its outer expression. At night, the image reverses itself, the entire volume then becoming a warm totalized glow, with the inner form of the building visible through the glass.
2010 World Architecture News Awards
—Civic Buildings Unbuilt
2009 International Property Awards
Architecture Award—Americas
2007 Progressive Architecture Awards
Bahá’í Temple for South America, Citation
2005 Ontario Association of Architects Awards
Ideas & Presentations Category—
Honourable Mention
2004 Canadian Architect Awards
Award of Excellence
