egyptian scenery in the church.

In the Downtown Presbyterian Church. The interior is decorated as if you were standing on the veranda of an Egyptian building. When we walked in I could hear everyone near me talking about how they weren't expecting the church to look like this. I agree. I was quite astonished when I walked in. I don't think i have ever seen a church so extravagantly decorated, except during VBS for the kids. Most church try to make the interior of the building aesthetically pleasing and beautiful, but not to distracting, so that it does not take away from worship and the purpose of church. 


Although this is not typical for a church. The decoration and building of the church does resemble Egypt. There are columns built into the walls, which resemble the hypostyle hall. The capitol is decorated with papyrus, which represented wealth. The colors are very representational of Egypt. The blues in the building represented the flowing waters of the Nile. The gold, yellows represented the sand/desert and royalty. The very geometric shapes decorating the columns were similar to ancient Egypt. The church attempts to transport you into Egypt with the painted receding columns, which make the space vast and feel like its really in Egypt. The ceiling is painted like the sky, to give the open air, patio feeling.  Every decoration was intricate and precise, they were truly trying to capture the essence of Egypt. The ryhthm of the columns opens the space and gives the feel of the hypostyle hall. By the placement of the pews and the vaulted ceilings along with the lighting it gives the space a grandeous feel. The lighting in the space is created by ceiling lights along with the colorful stained glass windows. Many materials used were paint and columns but papyrus and sand were represented in the art. Every piece has been truly thought about to create an Egyptian site.


This building was controversial, when they decided to do this to the interior. The building could still be controversial today, because it does not follow the typical mainstream church decor. Everyone was so shocked when we walked in. The vibe of the group was very perceptive, but yet confused. I fall into that place to, even after three days. I am not sure how I feel about the decor in the church. It was done very well and truly gives the vibe of Egypt, but setting of it being in the church still confuses me.