How is the cross created?

As a slit of light cut into the wall

Church of the Light Quiz: Tadao Ando's Cross of Daylight

This Church of the Light quiz steps into Tadao Ando's quiet concrete chapel in Ibaraki, near Osaka. Play 10 interactive questions on a small budget, smooth bare concrete walls, the cross of light cut into the wall behind the altar, an angled wall that guides visitors in, pews made from scaffolding wood, Ando's boxing past and his Pritzker Prize.

Start Church of the Light Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Country
Which country is the Church of the Light in?
City
In which city is the church?
Architect
Who designed it?
Year
When was it completed?
Material
What material forms its walls?
Cross
How is the cross created?
Wall
What guides visitors into the chapel?
Pews
What were the pews made from?
Past
What was Ando's career before architecture?
Prize
When did Ando win the Pritzker Prize?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which country is the Church of the Light in?
Answer: Japan
It is near Osaka.
Q2: In which city is the church?
Answer: Ibaraki
It is a suburb of Osaka.
Q3: Who designed it?
Answer: Tadao Ando
He is self-taught.
Q4: When was it completed?
Answer: 1989
It is a Protestant chapel.
Q5: What material forms its walls?
Answer: Smooth bare concrete
Concrete is Ando's signature.
Q6: How is the cross created?
Answer: As a slit of light cut into the wall
Daylight forms the cross.
Q7: What guides visitors into the chapel?
Answer: A wall set at an angle
It cuts through the box.
Q8: What were the pews made from?
Answer: Scaffolding wood
The budget was tight.
Q9: What was Ando's career before architecture?
Answer: A boxer
He never attended architecture school.
Q10: When did Ando win the Pritzker Prize?
Answer: 1995
It is architecture's top honor.

A Cross Made of Daylight

The Church of the Light, completed in 1989 in Ibaraki near Osaka, Japan, was designed by Tadao Ando for a small Protestant congregation. Built on a tight budget, it is a simple box of smooth bare concrete, Ando's signature material.

Behind the altar, a cross is cut into the concrete wall as a slit, so daylight itself forms the cross in the dark interior. A wall set at an angle slices through the box, guiding visitors in. The floor and pews were made from scaffolding wood.

Ando, a former boxer, taught himself architecture by traveling and studying buildings, never attending architecture school. He won the Pritzker Prize in 1995. The chapel's quiet play of light and shadow makes it one of his most celebrated works.

What This Quiz Teaches

Architecture fans will enjoy these questions.

Where the church is
Who designed it
How the cross is formed
What materials it uses
Who Ando is

Did You Know?

Visits often need advance booking.
A Sunday school building was added later.
Light shifts through the day.
Ando designed Naoshima museums.
Silence is part of the experience.