St Patrick's Cathedral

Light | The Sublime

  

Walking into the neo gothic cathedral of St Patrick, I feel a sense of relief and calming to my body. Not a religious believer myself, I feel a different connection to the church, than one that is a religious believer or have been brought up in a religious background. I have never been to a church for any type of ceremony or mass. Maybe this is the reason, when I do visit a church it does bring a sense of relief and calming to my body, being something I very rarely do and rarely have time to sit and relax.

 The calming of the warm Yellow light beaming through the high stained glass windows makes one feel relaxed and welcomed. A place where you can forget about the busy street outside and let your mind rest. When inside I felt my mind switching off, a sensation that rarely occurs in my day to day life.

When walking around the church, I came upon a man restoring a section of the tiles, piece by piece he hammered them into the ground, like a jigsaw puzzle.

For me the amazing patters on the tiles draws my attention to the middle of the church, where the priest sits at the altar.

James Turrell describes, “ My material is light, which I use to work the medium of perception”.  When applying this method to myself I found that my perception of outside did change. I know longer had thoughts of the outside world, I was completely engaged with the interior that I was in. The beaming light shining down on the interior of the church, A metaphor for “god” looking down on those who have entered his “house”. The warm yellow interior making one feel welcomed into “gods house” compared to the cold blues and purples at the entrance and exit, somewhat preparing one for the outside world again.  

The La Trobe Reading Room

"Inter-Story is a tactic to bring interior and history together..." Suzie Attiwill.


The Octagonal shaped room is full of “inter-story”, home to over thirty thousand books and three hundred and twenty reading desk, the amazing six-story structure has the acoustics to hear a pin drop through out the room. Know as the La Trobe Reading room, it has become a heaven for writers, readers and artists to come and work in a quite, creative space. The long desks allow for individuals to work in a spacious area in comfort.Opened in 1913 the Domes interior and exterior have created a remarkable presence for city goers over the years.


Up until 1998 the Dome had no natural light, the green lamps above the desks were the main source of light on the lower level and lights on the upper lever walls created a pathway to the top of the dome. Now the room is filled with natural from the glass roof of the dome although at nighttime the reading room reverts back to its original ambience, which in a sense allows people to experience the history state of the building as well as the light filled dome structure.


Looking down from the 4^th floor of the dome, I get a sense of order and hierarchy through the long lines of desks that all meet at the center of an octagonal shape desk. The interior of the Reading room also gives a sense of symmetry and repetition throughout, using the octagonal shape and straight lines. Drawing ones eye to the center of the room and the top of the dome.


Upon leaving the La Trobe Reading Room on the ground floor, I take a look back as the people sitting at the desk work away. I see the green lights, the desks drawing my eyes to the center of the room. As I walk away I realize that the people and the books make the inter-story.