david altrath reveals the timber world inside germany’s motorway chapel
the photographer documents schneider+schumacher’s landmark beside the A45, focusing on its unusual form and relationship with the surrounding landscape.
david altrath photographs germany’s autobahnkirche
David Altrath turns his camera toward the Autobahnkirche Siegerland, a roadside chapel by schneider+schumacher beside the A45 motorway near Wilnsdorf, Germany. His photographic series focuses on the sculptural geometry of the building, tracing the transition from its stark white exterior to the warm, intricate timber structure inside.
Completed in 2013, the chapel was designed as a place for travelers to pause beside the motorway. Its exterior translates the familiar pictogram of a church into a three-dimensional architectural form, with two pointed spires rising above a folded white volume. Altrath photographs this silhouette from close and distant perspectives, isolating its sharp edges, sloping planes and openings against the surroundings.
capturing the chapel’s timber interior
The series shifts toward the material and structural qualities of the building. Inside, a vaulted gridshell made from 66 engineered lumber profiles curves continuously across the walls and ceiling, creating a dense geometric pattern. Altrath’s images draw attention to the repetition of the timber ribs, often framing sections of the structure rather than presenting the interior as a single whole. The photographer also captures how daylight interacts with the gridshell. Small openings across the roof introduce points and strips of natural light, while larger skylights within the spires illuminate the chapel from above. The light picks out individual timber panels, creating changing patterns across the curved surface.
Altrath’s photographs present the Autobahnkirche as a study in geometry, material and light. By moving between its graphic exterior and enveloping timber interior, the series documents the chapel through the architectural details that become most visible when the building is experienced at a slower pace.
project info:
name: Autobahnkirche Siegerland
photographer: David Altrath | @davidaltrath
architect: schneider+schumacher | @schneiderschumacher
location: Wilnsdorf, Germany
