Worldwide online poll: Taitung’s “Tongdong Church” ranked first among world’s important modern architecture

▲ Taitung Tongdong Church. (Photo / Reporter Xu Wenbin)

By Travel Center / Comprehensive Report

Taitung’s “Tongdong Church” was recently selected by the World Monuments Fund (WMF) as one of the “30 Important Modern Buildings in the World,” and an online public vote has been opened. As of now, Tongdong Church has temporarily taken the lead with 10,517 votes.

The Tongdong Church is a fair-faced concrete modernist building designed by Swiss engineer Father Tarchini. It was once the tallest structure in Taitung and also one of Asia’s earlier examples of fair-faced concrete architecture.

▲ Tongdong Church currently has the highest number of votes. (Photo / Screenshot fromWMF official website)

The most beautiful part of this fair-faced concrete building is the church interior on the top floor. As the doors slowly open from both sides, the interior of the church gradually comes into view. The walls coated with rough-surfaced cement create a solemn sense of space, while a full row of stained glass on the right wall depicting the 14 Stations of the Cross not only tells the story of Jesus but also adds a splash of color to this dignified church. Natural light streams in through gaps in the sloped roof, entering the space through the clerestory and creating a beautiful interplay of light and shadow.

After a month of voting, as of the 1st, Tongdong Church is the only building among the 30 selected important modern structures to have received over 10,000 votes, currently leading with 10,517 votes. It is closely followed by Montenegro’s Spomen Dom with 8,300 votes.

Tongdong Church is currently open to the public, but advance online registration (http://chapel.likesyou.org/) is required. Visitors should also pay attention to dress code; shorts and slippers are not allowed.