Brian Rathsam shares his thoughts on 3-D modeling and how the services provided by 3Dream Studios elevates the design process.
Viewing entries in
Design Trends
How designers can help churches welcome worshippers and invite them to both stay and revisit—in the reality of late 2021.
When the pandemic hit, churches were forced into prioritizing their digital presence. As we move through what will (hopefully) soon be the end of the COVID crisis, most houses of worship have adopted hybrid models. With an increasing number of worshippers returning to church in person, facilities are reevaluating the guest experience they are delivering. At the same time, they are continuing to evolve their production techniques to address those who still prefer to attend church online, from home.
“We’re creating even more of a flow between inside and outside, especially in places with climates that allow that to happen," says David Evans, AIA, president at Mantel Teter in Kansas City, Missouri. Shown here: Rev City, image by Emmalee Schaumburg.
Indoor-outdoor experience
David Evans, AIA, president at Mantel Teter, an architecture firm based in Kansas City, Missouri, notes that even before the pandemic, churches were exploring how to build a connection between their indoor facilities and their grounds outdoors, and now this has become a top priority. “We’re creating even more of a flow between inside and outside, especially in places with climates that allow that to happen a lot,” he says. This translates into the creation of outdoor patios and gathering spaces where people may commune before and after services. “Some churches are even exploring outdoor worship venues where they can, at least part of the year, do services outside and have that open-air experience.” Indoors, he says that churches are reconfiguring their lobby spaces so that people may gather in small groups, rather than being clumped together in one big crowd.
The outdoor community space for Shepherd Church in Northridge, California, was designed by Visioneering Studios of Santa Ana. Image by Dave Milam.
Evans also points out that improving indoor air quality is another priority for many churches, which has led to upgrades to HVAC and mechanical systems to achieve better filtration. Some facilities have even posted signage alerting guests of these updates. “Churches are really making sure that people know their buildings are being well cared for, and what’s being done,” he says.
Digital translation
Greg Atkinson is founder of the First Impressions Conference and Worship Impressions LLC, a church guest experience-focused consultancy based in Charlotte, N.C. He is also author of "Secrets of a Secret Shopper: Reaching and Keeping Church Guests" and "Hospitality Ministry Volunteer Handbook: Equipping You to Serve." While he does much of his work at physical churches, he also examines how the church guest experience translates digitally.
“You want to give a good online experience that is produced well and looks good for people who don’t feel comfortable coming in person,” Atkinson says. This means houses of worship that weren’t previously equipped to produce high-quality streamed services must outfit their facilities for broadcast production, instead of relying on, as he puts it, “your smartphone hooked up to a tripod in the back of the room.”
Instead, Atkinson favors online experiences that feature a pre-show before the service, and a wrap-up session afterwards. “They have emcees and hosts and people talking to the camera, and they come on five to 10 minutes before the service starts and speak to the people at home, and give them announcements of what’s going on,” he describes. After the service, the same team will discuss key points of the sermon.
Atkinson also believes churches that record entirely different experiences for their online audiences are delivering a better guest experience for remote worshippers. Oftentimes, these services will feature the pastor delivering his message outside of the sanctuary, either from his office, or outside, maybe even from his car. “They are doing creative shoots where it’s storytelling, which is always compelling,” he says. “That really connects and communicates well.”
Producing specifically for online guests requires churches to make an investment in technology, and perhaps even remodel their facilities to accommodate it. Atkinson argues this is wise––if not necessary. “We’ll always have an online audience,” he says. “There are some people that are going to want to come in person, and they’re not going to miss [the service] no matter what. And then there are the people that are going to be more cautious and stay home, and we want to have experiences for both of them and reach people where they’re at.”
Staying power
Well before the pandemic, Dave Milam, vice president of strategic design at Visioneering Studios Inc., an architecture, design, construction, and property development firm headquartered in Santa Ana, California, was coaching churches on what a guest’s length of stay said about their overall experience. If, for example, guests were leaving five minutes after the service was over, one could argue that the church could stand to improve guest experience.
As more people return to worship in person, he continues to work with churches to develop strategies for encouraging them to linger. Once again, this often involves creating spaces outdoors where congregants may socialize over coffee and snacks while their children play in the nearby kid’s area.
Mill Creek Church, Shawnee, Kansas by Mantel Teter. Image by Emmalee Schaumburg.
Milam notes that Visioneering Studios’ property development arm works with churches seeking to leverage land they may not be using. He argues that those houses of worship that are able to transform unused land into a commercial mixed use development often see an increased length of stay among guests, because things like restaurant services, shopping, and even hair salons are literally right on church property. “Well-designed, on-site commercial development is a fantastic way to lengthen the guests’ stay. Plus, it activates the church property seven days a week and also provides an additional revenue stream for the church, as either a lump-sum sale or a land lease, where the church actually continues to own the property and lease the grounds to Visioneering’s development team while still maintaining design influence,” he explains.
While many houses of worship are doing everything possible to encourage people to come back on premises, Evans acknowledges that people have to want to come back to experience church as part of a live congregation––and feel comfortable doing so. This, he believes, will not be immediate, but he remains optimistic. “People want to return to what they know, to that normalcy,” he says. “It’s just going to take some time for their confidence to come back so that they feel safe in doing so. It’ll happen. It’s just going to have to take some time.”
First Impressions Conference
https://firstimpressionsconference.com
Mantel Teter
Visioneering Studios Inc.
Worship Impressions LLC
Theatrical lighting gets much of the attention in the design of church and worship spaces. But architectural lighting (including house lights in performance spaces), both functional and aesthetic, deserves the spotlight, too.
Architectural lighting is designed to blend seamlessly within any space, such as providing focused downlight or accenting certain areas of a room. This lighting can be comprised of recessed, track or surface-type light fixtures that add a personalized touch or complement specific characteristics of a church’s design.
Church.Design queried church architects and a manufacturer or two to learn about the role and offerings of architectural lighting in lighting projects.
Skyler Phelps, AIA, senior vice president of Kansas City, Mo.-based Mantel Teter, says the “new normal” is not that different than how the company has been working with its out-of-town clients over the years.
“In this uncertain time, we are continuing to utilize web conferencing technology to advance the development of facility improvement projects, which prepares churches to bring needed ministry space online as quickly as possible,” he says. “People gravitate to churches during difficult times. Churches that continue planning processes will be better positioned to meet the felt needs of the communities they serve.”
Lifesong Church opened its doors in 2006, first meeting in the Blackstone Valley Cinema de Lux, located in Millbury, Mass. As it grew, church leaders were looking to establish a more permanent location and presence in their community and reached out to architectural firm Mantel Teter in Kansas City, Mo., to help them transition to a permanent space.
The Pantone Color Institute recently announced its 2019 Color of the Year, with Living Coral taking the honor.
“It is a guide that forecasts the popular colors in design,” says Amy Wax, an international color consultant. “The Color of the Year can also serve as inspiration to see what colors would be great to tie into décor and focal pieces of a church.”
Numerous factors are considered when selecting the Color of the Year. The goal is to capture “what’s in the year” and offer insights on how prevalent colors are shifting.
“We travel globally and research extensively as we pick up cues that emerge in seemingly disparate industries that can signal a direction for a given color family,” Pantone explains on its website. “As we cull through this information and find commonalities in color, we also give a lot of thought to how people select paint colors and which colors are most applicable for their needs while remaining mindful of the color trends of years past.”
Almost upon us, 2019 is expected to be a year of changes that will reshape--or at least refine-- houses of worship. Designers agree that the worship space should serve the church as an expression of its brand while becoming an engaging tool for its mission.
Architects, designers and AVL professionals weigh in, predicting what will happen in the coming year:
1-Multisite movement continues to flourish. The multisite movement is stronger than ever, notes David Evans, president of Kansas City, Mo.-based architectural firm Mantel Teter. “The movement’s next chapter will be to start or acquire campuses to reach and minister to residents of specific communities. Many demographics will influence these choices and a church’s ministry skill sets. This could be churches or other retail/big box properties that will be renovated for church and community uses.”
Believing in what cannot be seen is a fact of life in religion. It’s also the case when it comes to acoustics, where sound interacting with the broadly variable geometry of church architecture can create anything from a heavenly aural penumbra around music to an echoic jumble around the spoken word.
In the past, knowing which way it was going to turn out was often as much a gamble as it was a sure thing. However, house-of-worship AV systems consultants and specifiers are increasingly turning to acoustical consultants and technology to help them know what a new or renovated church’s sonic future might hold.
Their tools are room-simulation and acoustical-evaluation software such as CATT-Acoustic, Odeon and EASERA. The platforms have been in use for about a decade, but their use has become much more widespread in the last several years, applied to a wider range of projects and venues, including more and more often, houses of worship.
Mantel Teter takes the plunge into the realm of virtual reality.
Some are challenged to visualize what a facility will look like or what a spatial experience will feel like from looking at 2-D drawings, simple 3-D images or even computer generated fly-throughs. These computer-generated images are, in many ways, an updated version of the hand-drawn renderings of the past. Virtual reality takes the client experience during the design phase to a whole new level.
David Evans was recently interviewed by Cathy Hutchison for an article that appeared in Church Designer. David and other designers around the country shared the ideology and components they believe will influence and change church architectural and interior design in the New Year. Read the article here.
“While the multi-site movement continues to flourish, its next stronghold may be a neighborhood church near you. Many experts in [the] field have written about this. This movement’s next chapter [is] to start or acquire campuses to reach and minister to residents of specific neighborhoods. This could be declining churches or other retail/big box properties that will be renovated.”