The Prayer Room is all about soaking in God's presence while in an intimate setting. It all started with my memory of biking to Cannon Beach this summer to a dune that overlooked Haystack Rock. While in that space, a dear friend and I read our Bibles. This was in the middle of a pandemic as well as around the time of George Floyd’s murder. A time in which the world felt broken and hopeless. A time when wherever I walked, I sensed the brokenness and fear that people were carrying. However, the time spent at the beach seeking God’s presence filled me up. Gave me hope. Restored my anxious and timid spirit. I hoped to recreate that in a way that a person can be reconnected to God. Shutting out the noise and chaos of the world and running to Him in faith. Just as Peter did when he stepped out of the boat.
Jesus Walks on the Water
Matthew 14:22-33
25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” 29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
In times when our lives are uncertain and difficult, God remains a constant. When we run to His presence, the noise cancels out and healing begins. We feel a sense of hope, peace and prosperity in Christ. When we solely fixate on Jesus' name, placing are fears and battles aside, it is impossible to feel worry. I want to be able to create a space where people can let go of their troubled hearts and rest in His presence. This is an idea that is relevant to the times, but is also such a need people.
While reflecting on my experience at Canon Beach, the verse about Jesus walking on water sparked my interest. I began reading and seeing many parallels in the meaning behind this project. Peter started to sink because he took his eyes off of Jesus and fixated on the waves around him. The waves in our own life varies. While we may not walk on water, we do experience hardship, turmoil and loss. To maintain our faith in Christ, we must keep our eye’s on Jesus’ power rather than our inadequacies. When we doubt Jesus’ power, we begin to sink in our suffering. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
Inspiration for the Prayer Room. I admire the lighting and the tree
(James Tralie)
Transition hallway that I planned to use
(Unknown)
Another inspiration for the Prayer Room
(James Tralie)
My primary goal in rendering a 3d model, was to make the prayer room dreamy and comfortable. I wanted to create an enviroment that brought nature into the scene. This could be achieved through greenery, lighting, and color. The images above were the style of renderings I hoped to acheive.
Maquette and 2d touchpoints drawn up
3d drawing of space to visualize maquette
Maquette looking downward
I had planned to design my space to have three separate prayer rooms in addition to another room that people would take part in trust after the wave room. While this would have been beneficial to my overall design, I decided to place less work on myself to refine and create a meaningful portfolio piece. Essentially, what it came down to was the timeline. Did I wanted to create something with not as much detail or creating something that has less space but more detail.
Touchpoint 1: Entrance to the first part in the experience: Learn
Touchpoint 2: Enter wave room (part 2: Trust)
-Beginning: Walkway w/ pathway down the center with water storming alongside the left and the right
-At the beginning it is dark and the water is wrestling
-As you get closer to the end the water begins to get calmer and the “sun” rises with beautiful sunrise hues
Touchpoint 3: Exit of room 1 and entrance into the hallway dividing the wave room and prayer room (put in place as a way to reflect between each room)
Touchpoint 4: Enter Prayer Room
Touchpoint 5: Sit in room of choice and spend time between you and God
Touchpoint 6: Leave room when you desire to leave.
Sketches for my original ideas of signage
High Fidelity Draft- I originally thought it would be interesting to try out horizontal screens but decided to do verticle.
Sketches of screens in the entrance
