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Autobahn Church Siegerland

schneider + schumacher built a church, along the A 45 motorway in Germany, that resembles a stylised white silhouette of a traditional village church.

In March 2009 schneider+schumacher won a competition run by the Förderverein Autobahnkirche Siegerland, which was founded specifically in order to set up a competition for this building.

The initiative for this project came from Hanneliese and Hartmut Hering, after they had visited a motorway church in south Germany. Just one glance at the map revealed that the closest autobahn churches were located near Münster and near Wiesbaden. But in Siegerland and along the very busy A45
motorway no such place existed.

This three-dimensional interpretation of a church pictogram can be seen from both the motorway and the service station as a stylised white silhouette of a traditional village church. The inner dome opens up to the area around the altar, which receives only natural illumination from above through both church spires. The filigree wooden vault resembles a delicate cross-ribbed structure.

Building work began in March 2011, commencing with the archaic sculptural concrete foundation slab, which forms the base for the timber-framed structure of the church above.

The consecration and opening of the building took place at the end of May 2013.