ChurchyDesign

This is just a test

2011-06-15T15:08:00.001-04:00

Notification Test

We've moved

2009-08-21T12:38:00.002-04:00

Thanks to all of you who keep stopping by! The site's popularity over the past few months has been encouraging.

So much so, that in efforts to bring you more content more often we've re-visited this sites guts and moved things over www.churchydesign.tumblr.com

Please update your bookmarks and head on over.

As always, you can reach us via churchydesign at gmail dot com

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Farewell Chapel

2009-08-11T08:47:00.001-04:00

1. Farewell Chapel
Architect: OFIS Arhitekti
Location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
Photography: Tomaz Gregoric

"The so-called Farewell Chapel couldn't be any simpler: Cut into the side of a hill, it's comprised of just three walls. The roof functions as a garden, and the chapel itself opens onto a terrace, allowing for outdoor gatherings. Tucked into the side of the building are the service spaces, including a kitchen, a bathroom and a dressing room. The one architectural flourish is the cross-shaped skylight, whose rim is also ringed with lights, for nightime."

• via Fast Company
• Also well documented by Dezeen

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Cow Tipping | Ryan Sworth

2009-07-01T11:58:00.002-04:00

Designer: Ryan Sworth
For: Elevation Church
c/o: Church Marketing Lab Pool

"This is the series graphic for our summer series - a 4 week look at sacred cows the church is often afraid to discuss - divorce, alcohol, sexual orientation, people dying who've never heard the gospel, etc. You know, all the good stuff. Should be fun. And since it's gonna be pretty heavy content, we wanted to lighten the mood with the art, while still keeping it dark and a little foreboding. Inspired by art from Dia de Los Muertos and the Jack Daniels logo (how fitting...)"

See also: Cow tipping mini-site

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Skye Jethani on Church archictecture

2009-06-29T09:30:00.003-04:00

In this short little interview, Skye Jethani talks about a shift in church architecture from that of sacred space to that of theater space and asks whether or these buildings challenge or re-inforce the assumed values of the culture around us.

c/o Out of Ur
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From Eternity to Here | Design Works Group

2009-06-21T01:13:00.007-04:00

Cover Design: The Design Works Group, Jeff Miller
Cover Photo: istockphoto

While we haven't read the book itself* if it's got anything to do along the lines of "they kingdom come, they will be done on earth as it is heaven" then Jeff Miller and the Design Works group have done a fabulous job.

Sometimes the best designs are the simplest.

*In fact, pretty much all the books on this site are judged solely for their covers....
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The Rabbit and the Elephant

2009-06-21T00:50:00.005-04:00

Designer: Unknown
found via: Tall Skinny Kiwi

While we're not so keen on the execution (the sub-title's font choice seems like a bit of an afterthought) the wit behind this cover is noteworthy.

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iBible

2009-04-29T14:59:00.003-04:00

Designer: Rayvox w/ Tripp and Tyler

via @cmlab

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Cartoon Church's Good Samaritan

2009-04-19T08:58:00.005-04:00

Designer: Dave Walker
Source

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Broken/Whole

2009-04-01T22:27:00.005-04:00

With Easter around the corner we thought this candle work was pretty inspiring.

Amazing how a little light can make all the difference ain't it?!

Via JonnyBaker

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Do Nothing

2009-02-20T11:55:00.006-05:00

Designer: Rareform
Source

Simple, commanding and excellent use of a universal symbol (the "stop" hand) for a universal message (slow is good.)

~~If you happen to know the designer and a link to any more of their work please let us know via the comments.~~Thanks David!

Church and Shadows

2009-02-08T21:09:00.006-05:00

Photographer: Malcolm Johnson
Location: On the way into Edmonton's airport
Source

And nope, this wasn't taken with a tilt-shift lens.

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The Life of Christ in Cats

2009-02-06T08:39:00.004-05:00

Artist: "Antonio Fictitio"
Source

We have absolutely no idea what kind of churchy background the artist behind this piece has, but it does bring up a lot of great questions about the various ways we portray Jesus to make him "more" attractive/palpable/chummy...
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Dürer's "Man of Sorrows"

2009-02-02T13:36:00.003-05:00

Designer: Albrecht Dürer
From: Small Passion (1508-1511)
Source

It's funny that even though we've been a fan of this piece since art school, we've never really noticed that Christ is depicted holding his head in sorrow post-crucifixion.

Any art students out there know of a similar treatment?

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Collide Magazine Covers (2008)

2009-01-30T13:28:00.003-05:00

Designer: Collide Magazine
Source

Over the course of 2008, Collide Magazine successfully managed to offer not one, but six stellar covers.

Our favorite, over here at Churchy Design has easily got to be the "Our Parallel Universe" issue for it's transparencies alone!

Well done Collide...we're looking forward to 2009's covers.

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Salvation Army - Floral Skull

2009-01-28T13:30:00.004-05:00

Designer: Unknown
Illustrator (Skull): Polygraphus
Client: The Salvation Army Youth - Western Territory
Source

~~If anybody knows the designer behind this floral flirt with death please let us know.~~ (Thanks Corey!)

The type could use a bit of work, but the skull imagery is absolutely spot on.

c/o Church Marketing Lab
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Amnesty International Candle Packaging

2009-01-25T08:47:00.003-05:00

Designed by: Kluif
Client: Amnesty International

We've always been a fan of Amnesty's barbed wire wrapped candle in the past, but we were quiet surprised to be this impressed with the packaging to their new candles.

Whether the Holy Spirit symbolism was intended or not, it's pretty rad to see a dove, a flame and a heart all featured prominently in the first two designs.

c/o The Dieline

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Brad Abare on Church Communication

2009-01-23T13:57:00.002-05:00

Catalyst Voices - Brad Abare on Communication Challenges from Catalyst on Vimeo.

This one goes out to all you churchy designers out there striving to accentuate/communicate your congregation's unique identity.

c/o Church Marketing Sucks

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Enemies

2009-01-21T11:52:00.005-05:00

Designer: The Plow

With a new President in the US and some expected changes to foreign policy soon to follow, we figured now's as good a time as any to share this piece from The Plow's "Not Art. Gospel" series.

Related: Can You Love Your Enemies

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What Would Jesus Drive?

2009-01-19T23:26:00.002-05:00

Designer: Unknown
Source

Whether this image is a real woodcut or not we're pretty impressed with the restraint exhibited by whoever designed this.

Nicely done.
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No Line on the Horizon

2009-01-16T13:42:00.009-05:00

Photographer: Hiroshi Sugimoto
Designer: Four5One
From: U2's "No Line on the Horizon"

With St. Bono and his choir regularly making waves throughout the Church we figured now's as good a time as any to feature the cover art for their upcoming release.

Off the bat, we think the sublime piece is easily their best pick for album art since working with Hugo McGuiness and Steve Averill on the cover to 1980's"Boy."

It will be interesting to see how well the album sonically fits the mood its packaging projects.

Your thoughts?

c/o Pitchfork

*UPDATE: u2.com has just posted an interview about the cover with designer Shaughn McGrath here.
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Salvation Army's Rǝʌoןution

2009-01-14T13:08:00.005-05:00

Designer: The Salvation Army
Location: Room 704, Empress Hotel (Vancouver, BC)
Photo: Erin Wilson

We're not sure when this design first surfaced but we've got to admit it's a much needed move on from Che Jesus.

After all, a revolution that turns things upside down through self-sacrifice and love looks completely different than the violent and bloody angle Che took...

Aside from the politics, the stenciling is a great touch and you really can't go wrong with red, white and black.
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Two Fish, Francis and Death

2009-01-13T13:10:00.007-05:00

We were browsing through LogoPond this morning and noticed these three beautifully churchy logos we thought you might enjoy.

1. Two Fish
Designed by: Ocular Ink
It's a shame "Two Fish" was never used because it's just so dang straightforward iconic.

2. St. Francis Hospital
Designed by: Robin21
Very clever. And it perfectly sums up Francis' life to boot. We're also pretty keen on the subtle reference to the trinity (can you see it?).

3. Death By Ministry
Designed by: Guezworks
This logo wasn't really designed with any churchy purpose in mind, but we thought some of the pastors and staff reading this post might identify.

Related:
ChurchRelevance's Top 33 Church Logos

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Eastlake Worship Night

2009-01-12T07:37:00.000-05:00

Client: Eastlake Church
Designer: Ministry Growers/The Plow
Found Online here.

With all the lightshows and merch tables and glossy promo that accompanies so much of the church's worship through music these days, it's refreshing to see such an understated treatment from the Ministry Growers/The Plow on this poster.

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Knoxlife Church

2009-01-11T12:15:00.002-05:00

Website: Knoxlife Church
Designer: Unknown
Screenshot taken on Jan 10, 2009

For a community so stoked on loving their zip code, it's rad to see the urban + local photography throughout their website.

Especially rad is the large image above the fold on their homepage: nothing says "this is where we live" more than an prominently placed photo of said neighbourhood

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Have your say - Comments turned on

2009-01-10T11:31:00.002-05:00

Apologies to anyone who's tried to leave a comment over the past few days - we just realized our comments were set to "registered users only."

We've taken the locks off now (!) and invite you to comment to your heart's content.

(Speech Bubble Taken from The Bubble Project)
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Objectified Trailer

2009-01-10T11:26:00.003-05:00

For all you Helvetica fans, there's a new trailer posted for Gary Hustwit's next documentary "Objectified." Enjoy.

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Weekend Reading: Jesus is Not a Brand

2009-01-09T08:45:00.008-05:00

Designer: Unknown
Screenshot taken from: Amazon

If you haven't come across it yet, Christianity Today is running an interesting piece on consumerism within/of the Church by Tyler Wigg-Stevenson titled: Jesus is Not a Brand: Why it is dangerous to make evangelism another form of marketing.

The article takes a classic McLuhan angle and cautions the Church to resist a "marketing" approach to communicating its message.

Countering claims that the church should "cut through the noise" with the language of our times (advertising in all its glory), Wigg-Stevenson ultimately argues the individualistic underpinning of the medium compromises the sacrificial and submissive nature we're called to as the Body of Christ.

Of course the article has already begun to stir up a bit of a conversation about semantics, but in general we think it brings up a lot of great questions for any designer looking to "speak" in a manner that's recognized - without being subverted by the medium itself.

But enough of our ramblings. Have you read the article? What do you think?

Brand Jesus: Christianity in a Consumerist Age

Further Reading:
• ChurchMarketingSucks Response(s): The Good, The Bad
• Christianity Today Review of Brand Jesus
• Wikipedia on "The Medium is the Message"
• The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture: How Media Shapes Faith, The Gospel and Church by Shane Hipps

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Vaux.net (2008)

2009-01-08T13:53:00.003-05:00

Design by: Unknown
Screenshot taken from: Vaux.net on Thursday January 8th, 2009

After taking a break from things, Vaux returned in 2008 with this simple 3 column Wordpress powered blog. From the state of things today though, it seems the site went back on break last September...

From their About page:

The core members of Vaux are still very much in touch. Distributed, but networked. Dormant, maybe; dead, certainly not.

There are rumours of projects and counter-rumours of jobs. There are babies to birth and children to spend time with.

Some time, some where, with some people, at some time, the same Spirit will doubtless breath life into some new thing. We’ll let you know when we perceive it. Until then, enjoy the site, the archives, the memories.

The Culturally Savvy Christian

2009-01-07T11:59:00.004-05:00

Book: The Culturally Savvy Christian by Dick Staub

Designer: Unknown

Screenshot taken January 7th, 2009

If anybody out there has a name or a link to the designer of this cover, it'd be greatly appreciated.

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The Salvation Army on VIRB

2009-01-06T11:20:00.000-05:00

Site: Salvation Army (Canada) on Virb
Design: Simmy
Screenshot taken on Jan 3 '09

Created as part of Virb's Do Good + Look Good series, this treatment of the (Canadian) Salvation Army is spot on: straightforward, uncluttered, interactive, and dang good looking.

All the most important pieces (Donate, Emergency Relief, and Thrift Store links) are placed above the fold and just below a series of powerful (ie. not cliché) images that rotate everytime you revisit the site.

Kudos to Sally Ann for allowing the treatment, and good on Simmy for keeping it so simple.

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College Park Church

2009-01-05T09:12:00.003-05:00

Site: College Park Church
Design by: Pixelight Creative
Screenshot taken on Jan 5th, 2009

Pixelight's work on College Park Church's website really does a great job of organizing a whole lot of information in a pretty clear and concise manner with a strong grid layout and use of a great muted colour palette to keep all the information calm.

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Six Modern Churches

2009-01-03T02:01:00.027-05:00

1. Chapel of Light (1989)
Architect: Tadao Ando
Location: Osaka, Japan
Photo Credit

2. Church on the Water
Architect: Tadao Ando
Location: Sapporo, Japan
Photo Credit

3. Church of the Holy Cross (1956)
Architect: Marguerite Bruswig Staude
Location: Sedona, Arizona
Photo Credit

4. Jubilee Church (2007)
Architect: Richard Meier
Location: Tor Tre Teste, Rome
Photo Credit

5. Infinity Chapel
Principal Architect(s): Antony Liu, Ferry Ridwan and Andra Matin
Landscape Architect: Belt Collins International Pte. Ltd.
Project Architect: Wiyoga Nurdiansyah
Location: Tanjung Benoa, Bali
Photo Credit

6. Airforce Academy Chapel
Architect: Skidmore, Owings, Morrill
Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado
Photo Credit

More
• Modern Church Architecture Flickr Pool
• Faith and Form Magazine

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A Few Churchy Design Resources

2009-01-02T13:02:00.000-05:00

Thinkerlabs.ca
Run by some fellow Canadians, Thinkerlabs.ca offers print resources. video, and numerous liturgical projects from around the web.

CreativeMYK.com
This network of designers is fast growing into quite the online community and offers as much chance to connect with other artists (and critique some work) as it does free artwork.

Got any churchy design resources to share? Leave a link the comments!

Happy hunting.
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Here we go.

2009-01-01T12:35:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the ChurchyDesign Blog's first post, we're glad you've found us.

Stay tuned over the next while as we shake things out and seek to bring you some of the "churchiest" design from the worlds of print, architecture and the web.

We're interested in how designers within the big-C Church are using their aesthetic sensibilities to communicate, illustrate, critique, expose, and explore matters of their faith. Our hope is that you'll find the site a helpful and inspiring resource for your own work, study, or reflection.

Luv letters and hatemail can be directed to:
churchydesign at gmail dot com

ChurchyDesign is proudly brought to you by James Kingsley and Young Lions of Pop.
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