Words by Francesca Perry
Colombian architecture studio Colab-19 delivered a temporary cross-shaped church structure for the Easter weekend in Bogotá. Described as ‘a temporary church for a pandemic Easter’ and named Alhambra’s Cross, the structure was devised in response to restrictions on religious gatherings due to the Covid-19 pandemic and rising case numbers across Colombia.
The architecture studio, which was set up in response to needs emerging from the pandemic and has also been responsible for a scaffold amphitheatre and market hub in the Colombian capital, approached Bogotá’s archdiocese wanting to
donate a temporary church for socially distanced, open-air Easter celebrations. The archdiocese connected Colab-19 to a local church in need, Parroquia Santa Maria de la Alhambra, which had suffered as a result of the pandemic and saw the opportunity of an outdoor church structure as a step to recovery.