The preliminary design proposal submitted for the campus chapel at the Catholic University of Córdoba (UCC) envisions a singular architectural piece, conceived as the spiritual and symbolic heart of the university community. Semi-submerged within the landscape, the proposal presents itself with both humility and strength, like a contemporary temple emerging from the terrain with a discreet yet deeply meaningful presence.
Its location responds to a Jesuit logic that structures communal spaces around a shared centre: a grand square whose edges are defined by existing trees, while proposing the addition of native species to materialise them. The chapel forms part of an imaginary cross alongside the Library and the Rectorate building, representing the three pillars of university life: faith, knowledge, and organisation.
The project integrates into the landscape as a natural extension of the central square. Its green roof of native herbaceous plants rises gently from the ground to culminate in a cross, allowing people to walk upon it and blurring the boundaries between architecture and nature. This topographical continuity turns the chapel into a complete spatial experience: one can be inside, above, or around it, encouraging both inner contemplation and a connection with the surroundings.
The design reflects the openness of the Ignatian spirit. Featuring a square floor plan and a side sacristy, its perimeter is fully glazed, enabling a constant visual relationship with the surrounding garden and bathing the interior in natural light. Two of its sides can be opened completely, integrating the interior with the exterior during special celebrations. The granite floor and the concrete retaining wall accompanying the southern ramp provide solidity and sobriety.
To the east, an ancient carob tree frames the altar and offers shade to concrete benches, creating a space for quiet reflection. To the north, a cluster of yellow lapacho trees provides coolness and shelter. This openness reinforces a central idea of Ignatian thought: God manifests in all things, whether inside the temple, beneath a tree, or in the silence of the garden.
Far from being a closed or exclusive space, the chapel invites visitors to walk through and inhabit it from multiple perspectives. The southern ramp allows one to walk around it and experience it from different levels, whilst the northern steps function as an informal amphitheatre where students gather. The materials used—a metal roof and granite flooring—reinforce an honest, durable, and unpretentious architecture.
