Finalists’ Gallery
Trahan Architects
US
With Landscape Design – Doxiadis+; Exhibition Design – Ralph Appelbaum Associates; Engineering – Buro Happold; and Lighting Consultant – Tillotson Design Associates.
Every drop of water that falls on the future site of the Museum of Jesus’ Baptism flows to Al-Maghtas on the banks of the Jordan River – the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Jesus’ Baptism.
Our proposal honors this sacred story by restoring the ecological network of thin wadis that carry water to the river, healing the fractured watershed. The below-grade museum enhances this fragile system, allowing water to flow naturally across the site.
Above ground, native plantings restore and shape paths in the landscape, guiding visitors through a wilderness on their contemplative journey. Underground galleries interpret Wilderness, Water, and Witness, each with a courtyard framing the sky and immersive spaces beneath restored wadis.
The museum is a peaceful node along a pilgrimage route, fostering stillness through humble architecture built from locally sourced rammed earth. Visitors descend into the Earth, then slowly ascend toward the sacred site, mirroring the Baptismal act.
