Church of the Blessed Sacrament
The Church of the Blessed Sacrament was part of a wave of modern Catholic churches that were built outside the central district of Singapore to serve the population who were moving to private and public housing estates in the suburbs. Unlike the Catholic churches designed by Alfred Wong—notably, the Church of St. Francis Xavier (1958), the Church of St. Ignatius (1961), and the Church of St. Bernadette (1961)—that are located in or near private housing estates, the Church of the Blessed Sacrament is located within Queenstown, the first public housing estate completed by the Housing and Development Board (HDB).
Designed by Gordon Dowsett of Iversen, van Sitteren and Partners, the church has a distinctive folded pitched roof that is said to resemble a tent, which bears biblical symbolism. Although the roof was not informed by the structural logic of folding, its sculptural form brings to mind the large roofs of the region’s vernacular architecture. The multivalence of the roof can be attributed to its skilful architect who also designed other sculptural buildings, such as the MacPherson Road Market (1953) and Globe Cinema (1957), both of which have unfortunately been demolished.
Location: 1 Commonwealth Dr, Singapore 149603
Architects: Gordon Dowsett of Iversen, van Sitteren and Partners
Year: 1965
Status: Conserved in 2005
Last modified on 4 May 2021. Description adapted from Chang Jiat Hwee, “Religiously Modern,” The Singapore Architect 14 (2018), 108-125.