St Bride's R.C. Church, Whitemoss Avenue, East Kilbride, East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire

Entry Name: St Bride's R.C. Church, Whitemoss Avenue, East Kilbride

Listing Name: Whitemoss Avenue, St Bride's Roman Catholic Church, Including Presbytery and Ancillary Buildings

Listing Date: 23 September 1994

Category: A

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 363286

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB26630

Building Class: Cultural

ID on this website: 200363286

Location: East Kilbride

County: South Lanarkshire

Town: East Kilbride

Electoral Ward: East Kilbride Central North

Traditional County: Lanarkshire

Tagged with: Catholic church building

Description

Gillespie, Kidd and Coia, 1963-4. Monolithic, rectangular-plan Roman Catholic Church; paved piazza; single storey presbytery. Red brick.

CHURCH

W (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: blind wall; blind slit windows along roof line; concealed entrance in central cleft; chamfer with brick stepping to left of entrance.

N ELEVATION: vertical patterns of cogging providing richly textured surface.

E (REAR) ELEVATION: horizontal patterns of cogging contrasting with the N elevation; dip in roof to right; stepped recess rectangular section below contrasting with the projecting cogging; similar detail near ground.

S (LITURGICAL E) ELEVATION: 5 stepped recesses in upper part with rainwater goods; stepped projection to right at ground - corresponds to the tabernacle in the interior.

Steel framed roof with slot patent glazing for lighting; 3 tall copper-clad dormers provide additional lighting.

INTERIOR: large rectangular, full height 'nave'; side chapel, confessional and baptistry on ground floor; freestanding gallery above side chapel etc; gallery on N wall at very top; all top lit.

'NAVE': paved floor; wooden pews providing 800 sittings; raised sanctuary with green carpeting; raised altar; recessed alcove for tabernacle; red curtain hung at back of alcove; sculpture of crucified Christ hangs above. Pulpit built into E wall; recessed flight of stairs leads to pulpit; front of pulpit curves out of wall; deep recesses all along E wall which allow light to trickle down into the interior.

GALLERY: plain space used as overspill; accessed by stair concealed in W wall.

UPPER GALLERY: runs along N wall; plain wall with curved base; regular pattern of stepped recesses along wall; accessed by spiral stair concealed in W wall.

PRESBYTERY, CHAPEL BUILDINGS AND PIAZZA: Z-plan single storey and basement range to W of church; red brick; flat copped roofs and fascia; small cornice of windows between fascia and roof; interplay between solid and void on walls. At SW corner of piazza is flight of steps; on top step is trio of round, reinforced glass windows - these light a shrine to the Virgin Mother below. Church and two ranges frame piazza; black with red brick tiling in shape of sun and its rays - symbolising the church and Christ as the light of the World.

Statement of Interest

Information courtesy of Father and members of congregation. St Bride's has been hailed as an amazing piece of contemporary ecclesiastical architecture and received the RIBA bronze medal for architecture in 1964, for the area of the Glasgow Institute of Architects. The expressionistic design of the exterior of St Bride's is enhanced by the dramatic chiaroscuro effect of the interior, which has Baroque overtones. The dismantling of the 90ft campanile altered the design but it is still possible to imagine the impact this towering structure must have had.

External Links

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