Tuesday 2 January 2007

Moonwalk Nature Church on fire on New Year's day





Yes, there's no more Moonwalk Nature Church. We were appalled by the news that the beautiful church we got married to seven years ago was burned last night. It will take years to restore the once popular church set in the middle of lush greens. Here's how it looked like before it was burned by 'kwitis'. For those who have not been there or watched the movie by Regine and Aga, here's how it was described in Design and Architecture Magazine: The home of God is amidst sensuous, lofty layers of voluptous architecture, carving and gilt. Within the obvious raison d 'etre is that God and Nature are One, the architecture and landscaping are inseparable. The landscaping, however, dominates the chapel and its grounds have golpe de gulat, bongga, and the entire ensemble is super malandi. The Moonwalk version is far from high-tech. Appearing to hover slightly above the earth, it is suspended from cables anchored to structural supports hidden in the foliage. A tarpaulin outer tent reduces an inner tent of anahaw leaves to just a decorative veneer using the fish tail pattern of the leaf's underside to texture the ceiling.


The tent defines a hollow on the terrain cups the open-sided, round main chapel. A flock of white Kapis doves statically spiral close to the ceiling, rising towards a central opening. Rows of picturesque but uncomfortable tree stump stools are pegged into a sloping floor painfully paved for those who kneel with flat stones inset in white pebbles washout. The twisted driftwood and marble altar grows on a low platform in front of a waterfalled, landscaped berm outside the covered area forming the backdrop. A life-size figure of the crucified Christ dominates the lush natural landscape.With the placement of plants, boulders, driftwood, gnarled tree stumps in calculated abandon, the staggering effect comes through as supra-natural.


Now you would understand how a bride who walked down the aisle of this church feel.

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