The Seashore Chapel is actually a project by Vector Architects, a religious centre serving the community. Seashore Chapel is the closest man-made space to the ocean in the area: in addition to religious services, many public and community events are planned in the facility. Visitors to the chapel have the opportunity to slow down, be in close contact with nature and examine their own inner state
Seashore Chapel as a century-old gift from the ocean lying on the beach
The Seashore Chapel is imagined as an old boat adrift, an empty structure that the ocean has left behind and now lies on the Chinese beach in Beidaihe New District
The space of Seashore Chapel is divided vertically, into outdoor and indoor space: the covered outdoor space naturally becomes a place for people to rest on the beach, a point of connection between religious space and social life. At times of high water, when the outer space is submerged in water, the image of a boat adrift emerges
The atmosphere on the upper floor is intensely divine and religious. The spatial experience begins on the 30-metre path leading to the chapel. With a glimpse of the ocean in the distance, one climbs the stairs, passes through the gate and walks around the wall overlooking the ocean. The relationship between the space and the ocean becomes more intense when you are higher up
The only large horizontal window with an ocean view is located on the east façade, framing the ocean view, and on the north side there is a cantilevered meditation space. In order to keep the external appearance uniform and continuous, all windows are hidden in the spaces between the main enclosure and several pieces of parallel sliding walls
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