#Inspiration
The monastery of Chung Tai Chan
elZinc Rainbow, where innovation serves tradition
Having received numerous awards, the Chung Tai Chan Monastery, designed by the avant-garde architect C.Y. Lee, has become a landmark of 21st-century religious architecture. Its Buddhist temple is currently the largest in the world outside China.
The design of the roofs, which confer so much identity to the monastery, is typical of Chinese temples built during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). The use of colour and ornamentation were fundamental to Buddhist architecture of that period.
This lead to the selection of elZinc Rainbow® brown and gold for the roofing and cladding of the museum of the Monastery. Its excellent malleability was also fundamental - the tiles used for the roofs had to supplant and displace the traditional use of clay tiles and adapt themselves to the intricate geometry of the project.
Using elZinc® provided the subtle blend of tradition and innovation required, allowing the whole Monastery to roundly achieve the best possible result.
