As we select the paints and stains for the interiors of our church, we should think about our goals and the effects of our selections. If we keep in mind that our selections of colors and their values will be integral to the church’s architectural integrity rather than a surface application of a current fashion. Below are some of our thoughts about color selection to open the discussion of what is a most lively topic in every church project.
Objects <->Action
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We should select colors to support what’s important. Traditionally, architectural colors are selected to enhance the architecture which then dominates everything else. A church building’s primary purpose is to support the prayers, songs, dances, oaths, celebrations, processions, protests, and devotions of the church. We are the church; the building is the domus ecclesiae, the house of the church. The actions of the church occur in the negative spaces of the building. The walls, floors, columns, arches, windows, and moldings define the field of the church’s liturgical actions.This means selecting colors which will allow the church’s actions to dominate its space - quiet rather than loud colors; soft rather than hard contrasts; natural rather than unnatural (chemical?) hues. The colors should be selected in harmony with each other and should recognize neighboring colors and events such as adjacent leaded glass windows and liturgical art objects. When selecting colors, we should imagine the building full of dynamic people, their colors, their movements, and their voices; even though we’ve been taught by photographic traditions to visualize empty churches.
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Contrast
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Colors can enhance our experience of mystery which is such an integral part of ecclesiastical architecture. Colors can enhance the richness of your church’s architectural elements.We should select colors to darken a naturally dark area and brighten a naturally light area; using a variety of shades of color to subtly call attention to architectural features.
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Lighting
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Colors can help the light from the lighting fixtures reach its subjects. The ceiling is the most important reflector. A light ceiling will filter the light from the lighting fixtures just as a filter changes the light going through a camera filter.The floor is usually the least reflective plane in a space because it’s occupied with people and furnishings; its reflectance is less important. The ceilings and walls, can light your dynamic church. We should keep colors light and neutral to help your lighting fully express the dynamic qualities of your church, your actions, and yourselves.
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Shapes
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Colors can enhance your church’s architectural shapes and volumes. These shapes are both positive and negative. Positive shapes are made of materials we can put our hands on, the materials of builders, the surfaces to which we apply color. Negative shapes are the volumes of space (air) defined by the positive shapes. They are the shapes through which we move and act. They are the shapes we experience, recognize, and remember with our bodies and our muscles. They are the shapes that architects sculpt to create fields of action and interaction.We should select light and neutral colors, the architectural shapes will be expressed with the widest range of values from darkest shadow to brightest highlight and will shimmer with the dynamic reflected colors of our windows, our art, and ourselves.
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