One of our favorite church’s is in Sardinia

Stella Maris church sits above the harbor in the paradise of Costa Smeralda, Sardinia. The promenade and the little square are the core points of the settlement of Porto Cervo and they show a sinuous development which can be observed in the neighbouring villas too.

The buildings are in the nature and are characterized by outside rustic walls, corners deliberately irregular, plasters covered in granite flour and natural pigments, unfinished wood, according to the rules of an architecture only apparently spontaneous, based also on the decorative function of irregular arches and columns.

The church of Stella Maris, built between 1968 and 1969 thanks to a project of the architect Michele Busiri Vici, is based on the Mediterranean style, yet respecting the traditional division in three naves.

The domed steeple continues the winding trend, defined outside from the chapels till the façade, preceded by an arcade carried by megaliths. Even the use of these stones, typical in the Island, is out of context, according to the “Smeraldinian” practice consisting in a revision of the building trade born from the mediation of a culture which was different from the one of today. Some details are of great charm like the granitic irregular disc pavement or Luciano Minguzzi’s sculptures and furniture.

It is the perfect church for a wedding in the summer. I enjoyed mass here it is so different from the Duomo’s in the Tuscan towns. All are beautiful, but if you are a summer & sea person, you will enjoy the views on a Saturday evening mass or early Sunday morning in spring or summertime!