Wood Chapel

Wood Chapel stands in Máximapark, Utrecht, as an open wooden art installation surrounded by a developing urban forest. The structure measures about eight by eight metres and rises six metres high. Wooden walls and metal elements create a building that recalls an American barn, an oriental chapel and a pagoda.

William Speakman completed the structure in 2009, drawing on remnants of ancient forests discovered around Utrecht. Its form follows a wood store, where timber dries before local processing. Students from Stichting Bouwloods built the structure, while Gijs Frieling and his team painted plants, animals, columns and ribbons across the interior.

The Utrecht foundation Tafelboom uses the space to dry wood from felled city trees for sustainable local work. Openwork walls filter daylight through the painted surfaces, changing the interior’s appearance throughout the day. A minor fire damaged the chapel in 2016, and a restoration preserved its wooden frame. In 2017, the space also hosted a wedding as a pilot for future ceremonies.