Construction Reports

Architectural rendering

Completed sanctuary (a view from the front steps)

Tenrikyo Mission New York Center Sanctuary is a new 7,500 sf house of worship in Flushing, Queens for members of Tenrikyo, a religious organization founded in Tenri, Japan in 1838. The religion has since expanded with representation in many countries worldwide, and this building, which is open to the public, is to be its regional center for New York and the East Coast states.

The spatial organization of the church centers around the Jodan - the sacred area for the shrines and where services are performed. There is seating for 150 members in the worship hall, with the ability for that space to open to the outside for additional seating. The religious service is followed by community dining, which takes place on the lower level. The dining hall looks out to an excavated garden along the north side of the building, with the Jodan floating above. Other programs include office space, meeting rooms, a nursery, translation booths, and storage and preparation areas.

Renderings vs Post-completion images

The exterior skin consists of cement board panels that alternate in tone to create a dynamic pattern on each elevation. A systen of aluminum extrusions hold the panels in place as they wrap around the building in modules decreasing in size at 4 inch increments. (text from marblefairbanks.com)