Indiana Architectural Database Spotlight: Roofless Church
Roofless Church
New Harmony, Indiana
Architect: Philip Johnson
The Roofless Church in New Harmony, Indiana
New Harmony Indiana is home to several architecturalattractions. One of the most prominentworks is the non-denominational Roofless Church designed by architect PhilipJohnson. The Church is comprised of an open park surrounded by a rectangular brickwall. The organization of the parkresembles a formal church with a center aisle and an altar. The altar however is replaced with a flower-likeshaped dome with cedar shingles engulfing a bronze statue, surrounded byshrubbery placed on an ornately laid out cobblestone patio. The canopy structure resembles a cloth drapedover a table and has been noted to cast a shadow that looks like an open rose. The golden rose was the symbol of the utopiancommunity that founded New Harmony.
The simplicity of the Church and the inclusion of trees and landscaping in the space is part of its charm. It is a clean Modernist statement about the preservation of nature and religion. It is also a unique project of Philip Johnson’s varied catalog. It is one of Indiana’s hidden treasures and is included as one of the first 50 projects in the Indiana Architecture Database created by the Indiana Architectural Foundation.
The Indiana Architecture Database was created to archive significant architectural works within the State of Indiana. For more information about this project and the Indiana Architecture Database visit https://www.architectureindiana.com/.
