USAF Academy Chapel - 3
by David Bearden
Title
USAF Academy Chapel - 3
Artist
David Bearden
Medium
Photograph - Hdr
Description
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA or Air Force) is an accredited college for the undergraduate education of officer candidates for the United States Air Force. Its campus is located immediately north of Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The Academy's stated mission is "to educate, train, and inspire men and women to become officers of character, motivated to lead the United States Air Force in service to our nation." It is the youngest of the five United States service academies, having graduated its first class in 1959. Graduates of the Academy's four-year program receive a Bachelor of Science degree, and most are commissioned as second lieutenants in the United States Air Force.
The Protestant Chapel is located on the main floor, and is designed to seat 1,200 individuals. The nave measures 64 by 168 feet (51 m), reaching up to 94 feet (29 m) at the highest peak. The center aisle terminates at the chancel.
The Chapel's tetrahedrons form the walls and the pinnacled ceiling of the Protestant Chapel. Stained glass windows form ribbons of color between the tetrahedrons, and progress from darker to lighter as they reach the altar. The chancel is set off by a crescent-shaped, varicolored reredos behind the altar. Semi-precious stones from Colorado and pietra santa marble from Italy cover its 1,260-square-foot (117 m2) area. The focal point of the chancel is a 46-foot (14 m) high aluminum cross suspended above it. The pews are made of American walnut and African mahogany. The ends of the pews were sculpted to resemble World War I airplane propellers. The backs of the pews are capped by a strip of aluminum similar to the trailing edge of a fighter aircraft wing.
Above the narthex, in the rear, is a choir balcony and organ, designed by Walter Holtkamp of the Holtkamp Organ Company, and built by M. P. Moller of Hagerstown, Maryland. The organ has 83 ranks and 67 stops controlling 4,334 pipes. Harold E. Wagoner designed the liturgical furnishings for both the Protestant and Catholic chapels.
Uploaded
August 29th, 2011
Embed
Share
Comments (6)
David Bearden
Carl, thank you very much and thank you for your collection of great images of the world...
David Bearden
Robert, thank you, am still in the throes of processing and posting, will have many in this series...