Disappearing Corners

Address: No. 316 Xizhang Road

Text with kind permission from www.Hudec.cn

Moore Memorial Church, known today as the Mu En Tang, is located at No. 316 Middle Xizang Road. It was formerly a Methodist Church, established in 1887 and then changed its’ name to “Moore Memorial Church”, when rebuilt in 1931 with money donated by Mr. JM Moore, in memory of his daughter. Occupied by the Japanese army from 1941 to 1945 and then by a Nanjing Middle School, it resumed its religious functions in 1979. Covering a site area of 1,347 square-meters and building area of 3,138 square-meters, the church was of a three-storey steel－concrete structure, constructed by the “English Eastern Ironworks” Company.
The Moore Memorial Church now serves as a community Church for Chinese Christians. . Facing West, the main church lies in the centre, with several auxiliary rooms at the four corners. Wide galleries on each side of the chapel serve as a transition space from the exterior to the interior worship space.. The English neo-Gothic church features unique exterior walls constructed in a textured pattern with alternating protruding red bricks and stone quoins on the wall corners. The flamboyant ecclesiastical lancet windows in the tower and on the bay windows in the entrance, and in the flanking halls are a typical Tudor style.. The Gothic vaulted ceilings, finished with stone ribbing combined with the stained glass windows, give mystery and warmth to the church. With a height of 42.1 meters, the Bell Tower on the south-west corner was the highest tower in Shanghai at the time.
The completion of Moore Memorial Church witnessed Hudec’s maturity in the free application of classical architectural styles. He was able to deal with complicated functional requirements, foundation conditions and the surrounding street-scape, and to cast rational thought toward the creation of an environment of a special character.

Tags: Huangpu District