The Wayfarers Chapel, a glass-walled, mid-century marvel that sits beneath a canopy of redwoods in Los Angeles, has closed indefinitely due to “accelerated land movement” in the area.
Known locally as the “glass church”, the building was designed by architect Lloyd Wright and designated a national historic landmark just two months ago. But the structure sits on the Palos Verdes peninsula, which is prone to landslides. Cracks had begun to appear in the structure, and several panes of glass had broken in recent months.
“Effective immediately, we are extremely devastated to announce the closure of Wayfarers Chapel and its surrounding property,” a statement from the chapel reads.
The chapel is located in the city of Rancho Palos Verdes, just south of LA, amid towering redwood trees overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It sits just above Abalone Cove, where homes have cracked and streets have buckled in recent months, and south of the Rolling Hills Estates, where dozens of homes last year began sliding into a canyon. “The City stands ready to support Wayfarers Chapel in any way possible to safely reopen this sacred space to the community,” a city statement on the closure reads.
City inspectors noted damage and signs of land movement at the chapel, though they did not yellow- or red-tag any structures for immediate closure. Still, the chapel’s board of directors decided to shut the chapel and grounds so repairs could be made, according to the city.
Intense rain and storms in recent weeks have deepened worries about landslides, which have been a hazard in the region for decades.
The chapel was completed in 1951, and over the years has become an iconic wedding venue and tourist attraction. Film stars Jayne Mansfield and Mickey Hargitay were married here in 1958, as were thousands of less-famous couples.
It is the most well-known work of Wright, the eldest son of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It was built as a memorial to the 18th-century Swedish philosopher and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg – conceptualised as a place where people could connect with God and nature. It blurs “the lines between architectural structure and natural landscape”, the national historic landmarks program wrote, after dedicating the structure in December.
