Al Rawda Mosque which was inaugurated in September 2011 during the month of Ramadan, is located in the area of Badr Al Jadeeda in Amman. The project sits on a flat land at an intersection of three roads in a quiet neighborhood of local style residential buildings among hills of greenery. The main challenge of the design was to explore new possibilities of the Mosque typology yet maintaining the identity and spirituality of such an influential building. The work included the design of all aspects including architecture, interior design, furniture, woodworks, carpets, door handles, and all other items. This played a major role in implementing the concept on all elements in the project and carrying it to its full potential.

Upon entering the Mosque the user is met with a roofed porch that has a verse of the Quran written in relief on the Ajloun stone front edge of the canopy, and a patterned steel structure to the left that is bottomed with a planter and topped with an opening to the sky to allow plants to climb on the structure and penetrate the canopy to the light. The passageway to the right leads to the ablution areas and is separated from the main street with a two-story high wall that is made with a pattern of glass reinforced concrete. This wall conceals the service area and shoe racks and at the same time allows light to penetrate and play on the stone with its shadows and patterns. The pattern used in these structures is a re-adaptation of a Seljuq pattern from the eastern Islamic lands. It was chosen for its uniqueness and geometric complexity and interest.

The main door of the Mosque is an impressive four-meter high solid walnut wood door with a pattern engraved on it. It leads to a yet more fascinating space in the main prayer hall, which is a linear space directed towards Mecca with a suspended wooden perforated partition separating the women’s hall in the mezzanine, providing privacy yet maintaining engagement with the spirit of the Mosque.

The concept of the building is to sculpt a contemporary spiritual space using light as the main tool in a minimal architectural language. The masses and openings are designed to respond to natural light throughout the day from the various angles and shapes of the windows. The large eastern glass façade of the main hall is paralleled with a six-meter high freestanding patterned wall that filters the morning light and allows it to penetrate the interior space forming a variety of patterns on the floors and emphasizing the Qoranic verses inscribed on the walls. This light changes direction and shape with the change of sun angle until at noon it reaches the thin long strip of glass above the Karaki stone Mihrab, which is a Jordanian stone that is known for its deep grey color and unique patterns. The light also emphasizes the calligraphed Qoranic verses that are written in relief on the upper circumference of the space and reflects on the patterned ceiling and the five-meter dome exposing its multiple levels and depth. In the afternoon and at the time of the sunset prayer, the light penetrates from the western end through the long perforated wooden Minbar to again draw patterns of different scales and shapes on the simple carpeted blue floor also designed by the Atelier using simple Islamic patterns.

These effects are reversed at night when the interior lighting starts to penetrate the facades to the outside and reflect the same patterns on the outer surfaces and pathways extending the atmosphere to the surrounding areas. This play of light, mass, and material is a modernization of the traditional Islamic art to create a three dimensional sculptural quality of space. This is further enhanced on the outside with the sculpted crescent on top of the dome that was designed as three perforated steel crescents that intersect in a three dimensional manner and creates an interesting effect of light and shadows and gives a different perspective depending on the location of the viewer. The minaret is also a freestanding structure that ends with a GRC pattern that fades into the sky and creates an effect of verticality and endlessness.

This Mosque is a combination of complexity and simplicity in the way that complex patterns and elements are all combined in a minimal space to allow light to enhance the spirituality of the space through its sculptural quality and to create a variety of atmospheres. It is an interactive space that connects with its users creating an architecture of light, tradition, and the contemporary.

Source: Uraiqat Architects