‘Sacred Chapel’
‘Home Sweet Home’

2024

An exploration in spiritual spaces,
a chapel that targets the human
senses and a church that unlocks
domestic memories.

concept, design, rendering, video editing, and soundtrack mixing by Sean Le.

SACRED CHAPEL
A contemplative chapel designed to offer USC students a silent space
for reflection amid the intensity of academic and urban life. Drawing
inspiration from the subterranean Taos Kiva, a circular ritual space
used by Indigenous communities for spiritual ceremonies, the project
reinterprets its ritual rhythm and spatial sequence into a contemporary
architectural language.

A series of oscillating concentric voids transforms the traditional
circular kiva into an immersive spatial experience, enclosed within a
brutalist cubic volume. The design uses geometry, material weight,
punctuated light, and wind charms resonate to guide visitors into an
introspective state, creating a space that feels both alien and
organic, ancient, and modern

HOME SWEET HOME - An architectural exploration of the American church as an
extended family unit, where spiritual community and domestic
intimacy intertwine. The design treats the church like a home,
centering on a basement space as a church hall, envisioned as
a room for authentic interaction, collective dreaming, and support.

The project descends into a warm, wood-clad lower level that
evokes the familiar comfort of domestic interiors, while the upper
roof volume rises in cold, contemporary concrete, symbolizing
spiritual aspiration. The program around the ceremonial space
unfolds like a home: a communal living room, shared kitchen, and
dining area, private offices, and a music room for a gospel choir, all
organized along a central hallway spine inspired by midcentury modern
California houses. Through this juxtaposition of domestic typologies
and sacred space, the project reimagines
The church as a modern communal home.

Architecture
USC Spring 2025
B.ARCH

‘formal’ totes

sentimental archetypes reworked into everday utilities

sentimental
archetypes
reworked into
everday
utilities