The Water-Moon Monastery stands quietly facing the Keelung River, with Mount Datun as its picturesque backdrop. Beyond two walls that separate the bustling highway from this
ethereal space, an 80-meter-long lotus pond unveils itself, reflecting the shrine at its distant end.
Project Name: Water-Moon Monastery
Studio Name: KRIS YAO | ARTECH
Location: Taipei, Taiwan
Client: Dharma Drum Mountain Nung Chan Monastery
Architect: Kris Yao
Project Principal: Hua-Yi Chang
Design Team: Kuo-Lung Lee, Yvonne Lee, Wen-Li Liu, Jen-Ying Kuo, Chin Tai
Construction Inspection Team: Yi-Heng Lin, David Chang
Project Inspection Supervisor: Jun-Ren Chou
Floor Levels: 2 Floors Above Ground, 1 Floor below ground
Site Area: 27,936 m2
Lot Coverage Area: 3,206 m2
Gross Building Floor Area: 8,056 m2
Design Phase: 2006
Completed: 2012.12
A mirage of the oversized colonnades and flowing golden drapes materializes and vanishes with the rippling water, manifesting the interplay between reality and illusion. It poses a Zen inquiry, “is it the wind? Is it the drapes? Or is it the unsettling mind causing the movement?”
The exterior wall adjacent to the main hall features the 5,180-word Diamond Sutra, engraved in large Chinese characters on precast concrete panels. Each perforated character harks back to ancient Chinese movable type, bridging the primitive and modern through contemporary fabrication techniques. As daylight filters through these apertures, the Buddha’s teachings are projected as a text of light in the interior spaces, and after the rain, the script reflects on the still-wet pavements outside. This unique sutra presentation complements the monastery’s design and, coupled with the serene surroundings, silently conveys the underlying philosophy of the aphorisms.
The main hall’s wooden exterior, seemingly suspended on a transparent glass base, appears
to float in midair. Employing a technique akin to the Diamond Sutra, characters from the
Heart Sutra punctuate an expansive internal wall, revealing their meaning as daylight projects them onto solid surfaces. Following the sun’s movement, these sacred words of light gracefully dance across concrete walls and columns, evoking the effect of a prayer wheel and seemingly slowing the passage of time itself.
The use of concrete as the primary material defines the monastery’s unadorned façade and
muted color scheme, at the same time reflects the simplicity of Zen Buddhism. Inside the
main hall, 108 Buddha sculptures recess into the north-facing wooden wall. On the opposing side, an extensive glass wall welcomes natural light in and offers a generous view of the sky.
At specific times of the day, reflections of the sculptures emerge in the sky, as if the Buddha
miniatures are meditating among the clouds.
