THE CHAPEL OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS is one of the most sublime projects for our firm. It is an ancient chapel that was built inside a hacienda in Mexico more than a century ago. The chapel was active for many years, but over time, it suffered unfavorable changes in its interior and was gradually abandoned until it was closed.
The property on which it stands recently acquired a new purpose: a new traditional city designed in collaboration with the great master Léon Krier. The original hacienda has been transformed into a boutique hotel that will be part of the first neighborhood within this new city called Herencia de Allende, making this old chapel the first sacred building and the heart of this new urban neighborhood.
This chapel was renovated and restored with special care both on the outside and the inside, reinvigorating traditional principles of sacred architecture. The master plan, since day one, provided an appropriate urban context to surround it, and a new square was subsequently formalized, adding access stairs, a sacristy, and two flanking towers. The entrance facade now has a special portal made of natural stone and a translucent stained glass window within it. On the portal rests a small bell tower, whose bell was designed and manufactured especially for the chapel. Crowning the composition is a cross carved in stone inspired by the legacy of crosses with high geometric refinement.
On the sides and back, new facades were designed to incorporate windows inspired by the beautiful temple of Atotonilco, located just a few kilometers from the site. The special light effect achieved by these windows, the remodeling of the altar, the incorporation of arches that separate the altar from the central nave, and the pendentives integrated into the original dome, enhance the focal point of the chapel: the beautiful and ancient image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus carved in wood and resting on a pedestal with the new tabernacle.
All these new elements create a new atmosphere of great recollection for the devotion of the faithful. The original vault of the main nave was carefully cleaned and restored, and the lighting design inside, as well as the placement of a votive lamp, completes the harmony of the interior architecture.
Credits
Architecture: Léon Krier, Pedro Pablo Godoy Barrios y María Sánchez, Estudio Urbano
Construction Supervision in Mexico: Arq. Claudia García de Sánchez
Construction Documents: Estudio Urbano
General Contractor: Promovibra
