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New Facilities Honor:Dynerman Architects, PC,St. Ignatius Chapel at the Georgetown University Bluemont, Virginia,Photo: Alan Karchmer Photography

Nothing impressed the 2014 awards jury (which met last July to review 134 submissions) as much as the sheer diversity of the submissions across the categories, and the overall high quality of the work. The outstanding excellence of projects put forward for awards made the jury’s work challenging, and it resulted in one of the highest number of winners in recent memory—a total of 32 awards were bestowed this year, as compared with 19 winners last year. This jury also decided to rename the two award categories. In the past, juries have given Honor Awards to projects deemed at the highest level of accomplishment. On these projects the jury’s decision was essentially unanimous; where there was a split vote, winning projects were given Merit Awards. This year’s jury expunged the word “merit” and simply assigned the designation “award.” The jury felt that the word “merit” connoted a level of inferiority, which was not in line with the overall superiority of the submissions across the board. We thank the jury for its discretion and word-smithing.

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New Facilities Honor:HOK,KAPSARC Community Mosque Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,Photo: A.D. Alolyan

To what did the jury attribute the superb level of submissions this year? Jury members agreed that religious art and architecture are flourishing throughout the world, and that artists, architects, liturgical designers, students, and others are exploring ways to balance tradition with new demands of religious practice. The landscape of sacred space is changing, along with dramatic shifts in organized religion. And while those seismic events are greatest among the world’s more traditional and established religions, the jury noted that the award winners, and many who made submissions to the awards program, have chosen not to be identified by just their traditions—a choice that the jury celebrated as courageous, creative, and vital if traditional faith communities are to survive. “They are willing to explore other avenues in those traditions,” one juror commented, “to reinvent them, to start new traditions, perhaps.”

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New Facilities Honor:Roseta Vaz Monteiro Arquitectos,Boa Nova Church Estoril, Portugal,Photo: João Morgado

Another aspect of this year’s submissions that impressed the jury was the level of sophistication at radical extremes of size and scale. The jury found brilliant work at polar opposites, in small places and large, from a humble building in rural Thailand designed and built for about a dozen kids, to a gargantuan megachurch in a Texas suburb for thousands of worshippers. Jury members agreed that great art and excellent design always have the potential to serve very small and very large constituencies in the wealth of the world’s faith traditions. They were struck by the juxtaposition of modesty and luxury, shoestring budgets and expensive projects, a spectrum across which distinction is attained. “From tiny to large projects,” one juror commented, “people are achieving excellence.”

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Restoration Honor:Northeast Collaborative Architects,Church of St. Gregory the Great Portsmouth, Rhode Island,Photo:Aaron Usher

And they are achieving it around the globe. The jury came away from its two days of submission reviews and deliberations impressed with how truly international the awards program is, with broad representation of faith communities around the world, submitted by artists, designers, architects, and students from different backgrounds and cultures. This bodes well for the future of art and architecture for the spirit—changing drastically, yes, but alive and well.

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Renovation Honor:domusstudio architecture,First Presbyterian Church of Burbank Burbank, California,Photo:Brady Architectural Photography

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New Facilities Award:Pellitteri & Associati Studio,St. Gregory’s Church Agrigento, Italy,Photo: Alessia Riccobono

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New Facilities Award:Herman Coliver Locus Architecture,Temple Judea Tarzana, California,Photo:Farshid Assassi

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New Facilities Award:CetraRuddy Architecture,Lincoln Square Synagogue New York, New York,Photo:David Sundberg/Esto

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New Facilities Award:Robert A.M. Stern Architects, LLP,Our Lady of Mercy Chapel » Salve Regina University » Newport, Rhode Island,Photo:Francis Dzikowski

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New Facilities Award:Kochi University of Technology,Prayer space in the “Floating School”Shangkhaburi village, Thailand,Photo: Kikuma Watanabe

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New Facilities Award:Paul Lukez Architecture,Proyecto Clamor de Paz » Guaimaca, Honduras,Photo:Paul Lukez Architecture

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New Facilities Award:Shim-Sutcliffe Architects,Residence for the Sisters of St. Joseph of Toronto Toronto, Ontario, Canada,Photo: Bob Gundu, James Dow

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New Facilities Award:OMNIPLAN Architects,Watermark Community Church Dallas, Texas,Photo:Peter Calvin

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Renovation Award:Frank Shirley Architects,Christ Church Cambridge Cambridge, Massachusetts,Photo:Randy O’Rourke

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Renovation Award:Houser Walker Architecture, LLC,Emmanuel Episcopal Church » Athens, Georgia,Photo:Hank Houser

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Renovation Award:JNW Studios Architecture • Interior Design,St. Thomas More Catholic Church » Sarasota, Florida,Photo:Greg Wilson Photo

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Renovation Award:architectsAlliance,St. James Cathedral Centre » Toronto, Ontario, Canada,Photo:Tom Arban Photography

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Restoration Award:Newman Architects, PC,West Side Presbyterian Church Ridgewood, New Jersey,Photo:Peter Aaron (Esto), George Shagawat

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Liturgical/Interior Design Award:wheelerMADE / Daniel Wheeler,Campbell Hall Center for Spiritual Practice Los Angeles, California Photo:wheelerMADE

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Liturgical/Interior Design Award:SILO AR+D,North Presbyterian Church Cleveland, Ohio,Photo:Pease Photography

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Liturgical/Interior Design Award:Duda|Paine Architects,Quiet Room ,Duke Cancer Center Durham, North Carolina,Photo: Robert Benson Photography

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Liturgical/Interior Design Award:ROGERS PARTNERS Architects + Urban Designers,Westchester Reform Temple Scarsdale, New York,Photo:Paul Warchol

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Liturgical Furnishings Award:Albano Poli,Paschal Candleholder Cathedral of Bari, Italy Photo:Michele Trevisanello

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Visual Arts Award:Scott Parsons,“Gloria Dei” Gloria Dei Lutheran Church Sioux Falls, South Dakota Photo: Brian Rotert

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Visual Arts Award:Scott Parsons,Heavenly Jerusalem Windows Our Lady of Loreto Catholic Parish Foxfield, Colorado,Photo: Jim Jones, Specular Edge Photography

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Visual Arts Award:Sarah Hall, RCA,“Lux Gloria” Cathedral of the Holy Family Saskatoon, SK, Canada Photo:AK Photography

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Ceremonial Objects Award:Linda Witte Henke,“Festive Red” Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Photo:Michael Watson

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Ceremonial Objects Award:Laurie Gross Studios,Ark Curtain Adas Israel Congregation Washington, DC Photo:Elisha Schaefer

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Landscape Award:Merriman Holt Architects,Columbarium Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church Houston, Texas,Photo:John Lindy

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Student Work Award:Anthony Papa,Hartford Islamic Center Hartford, Connecticut Rendering:Anthony Papa

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Student Work Award:Jeanie Fan and Dimitra Theochari,“Nectorium/Nectarium” Thassos, Greece Rendering:Jeanie Fan

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Student Work Award:Travis Price Architects / Catholic University of America / Spirit of Place-Spirit of Design, Inc.“Tale of the Tongs” Inishturk Island, County Mayo, Ireland,Photo: Michael McLaughlin

The 2015 awards program opens for submissions (at faithandformawards.com) on April 1, 2015.

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