Our Favourites: Three inspiring mosques

These three religious buildings offer an inspiring spiritual setting to their visitors: The reduced Punchbowl Mosque in Sydney, the community centre Hikma Religious Secular Complex in Dandaji, Niger, and the minimalistic Sancaklar Mosque in Istanbul.

Tradition reduced to essentials: Punchbowl Mosque in Sydney

The Australian Islamic Mission has long been established and active in Punchbowl, a multicultural district of western Sydney. All this is expressed by the mosque it has had built and the community centre that is soon to follow. The architects consciously did without the usual characteristics of a mosque, such as a minaret towering high above the building.

Client: Australian Islamic Mission        
Architecture: Candalepas Associates
Location: Punchbowl, Sydney (AU)

New tandem partners: Hikma Religious Secular Complex by Atelier Masomi and Studio Chahar

Atelier Masomi and Studio Chahar transform a dilapidated mosque in Dandaji into a community centre which combines religious and secular elements.

Client: Dandaji Community
Architecture: Atelier Masomi und Studio Chahar
Location: Dandaji (NE)

A minimalistic experience: Sancaklar mosque in Istanbul

Dispensing with traditional forms and symbols, Sancaklar Mosque in Istanbul provides a setting for inner monologue as a search for meaning. Black-and-white photos of the building shell attest to the power of reduction.  

Architecture: Emre Arolat Architects, Istanbul
Location: Karaagaç Mahallesi, Büyükçekmece, Istanbul, Türkei