Located within Forest Home Cemetery, the site sits along the edge of the Des Plaines River, where the cemetery is physically divided by the water. At present, there is no functional way to cross the river, as the only existing bridge is closed due to structural failure.
The selected site occupies a vacant riverfront parcel that once housed a pump station and contains no burial plots or standing structures. This condition allows the intervention to engage the landscape without disturbing the cemetery. The project proposes a pedestrian bridge that reconnects the divided grounds, with a chapel positioned along the river to acknowledge both the act of crossing and the presence of water as a central spatial and symbolic element.
The design process began with light as the primary driver. Through a series of study models, three qualities became central to the project: diffused, channeled, and framed light. Diffused light gives the chapel a sense of lightness and floating, while channeled light creates more dramatic spaces for service and remembrance. Framed light and views are directed toward the river and surrounding landscape, strengthening the connection between the architecture and its natural setting.
Located within Forest Home Cemetery, the site sits along the edge of the Des Plaines River, where the cemetery is physically divided by the water. At present, there is no functional way to cross the river, as the only existing bridge is closed due to structural failure.
The selected site occupies a vacant riverfront parcel that once housed a pump station and contains no burial plots or standing structures. This condition allows the intervention to engage the landscape without disturbing the cemetery. The project proposes a pedestrian bridge that reconnects the divided grounds, with a chapel positioned along the river to acknowledge both the act of crossing and the presence of water as a central spatial and symbolic element.
