The new St. Joseph Catholic Church sanctuary has a 33-foot arched ceiling painted deep blue and studded with 23-karat gold leaf stars, with a symbolic oculus skylight in the center that reflects both spiritual themes and the fire that devastated the church three years ago.
The memory of natural light streaming through the collapsed roof above the altar was unforgettable for those who would redesign and rebuild the 70-year-old building in downtown Salem.
“Several of us very early on, when we came in here right after the fire and saw that, we thought of the idea,” said Aaron Terpening, a CBTWO Architects design principal. “The light was coming in, and we just thought this is what it should be. It should have some natural lighting. Then it was just a matter of making sure wasn’t a theological reason not to do it.”…