Steffen Kunkel: Search for the Indefinite
Gottfried Böhm and the Pilgrimage Church Mary, Queen of Peace

The Pilgrimage Church of Mary, Queen of Peace, in Neviges (North Rhine-Westphalia), is regarded as Pritzker Prize winner Gottfried Böhm’s most important work. It is also considered a key example of 1960s sculptural architecture and an epochal contribution to twentieth-century church construction in the Catholic tradition. As a building, the church was a worldwide sensation, but what is less well known is that it was conceived of as the crowning work of an entire pilgrimage district. In planning terms, Böhm’s work was an intervention in the town’s urban fabric, creating a complex configured along an ascending cascade of squares that included a kindergarten, a pilgrims’ house offering overnight accommodation and common spaces, and finally the sacred building itself. Unlike earlier studies, which focused purely on the church, this is the first detailed analysis of the entire area. This publication, which is intended for a varied readership, constitutes an important, new basis for understanding Böhm’s work.

Steffen Kunkel is an architect, photographer, and designer. Teaching positions: TU Darmstadt & KIT Karlsruhe.