Studio Four Design, a Knoxville, Tenn.-based architecture and design firm that focuses on houses of worship, earned a 2017 Solomon Award for design by Worship Facilities Magazine. The award was for work on Knoxville’s Grace Baptist Church student ministry building, and the announcement of the honor was made at WFX Conference & Expo in Dallas on Oct. 11, 2017.
The award was presented in the category of Church Design – Youth and Children’s Spaces for facilities with 301-800 seats. The Grace Baptist Church project was started in 2016 and completed in early 2017.
Grace Baptist leaders wanted the new environment to be relational and fun for the youth of the church. These ideas reportedly became key concepts for the design and construction team of Studio Four Design. Church staff needed the new building to complement the transitional style and materials of the existing church campus buildings, but also to be uniquely its own to reflect the brand and identity of Grace Student Ministries.
“Expansion is a challenge for any church,” says Stacy Cox, president of Studio Four Design. “The leadership of Grace and their student ministry team had a strong vision, and it was our privilege to bring that vision to life. Our team [was able to give the new space] a generational vibe to resonate with the students who would enjoy spending time [there].”
The centerpiece of the facility is a new student auditorium. It provides room for more than 700 students in a mid-week service and is designed for a flexible arrangement of seating. Built at a cost of $3.5 million, Merit Construction was able to deliver the project on time and within the budget constraints of the church, Studio Four Design reports, while working within a site in the center of an active church and Grace Christian Academy K-12 school, also located on the campus.
