“We are ‘building doctors,” explains Tina Paterno, Executive Director of the San Sebastian Basilica Conservation and Development Foundation, Inc. Ms. Paterno is an architectural conservator who has worked with a private firm in New York and worked on the conservation of the city’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the United Nations Building. As she explained the history, grandeur, and current state of San Sebastian Church in Quiapo, Manila, the architects fell silent in awe of the beauty of the church and mournful of its rusted condition.
It is the only church in the Philippines whose original interior finishes have survived to this day, albeit in bad need for conservation. Stained glass windows from Germany and the image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel from Mexico survived World War II. Sadly, the ivory head of the statue was stolen in 1975. Completed in 1891, the only all-steel church in Asia was pre-fabricated in Belgium and then shipped to Manila. It has long been rumoured that Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (yes, the one responsible for THE tower in Paris and the structural design of the Statue of Liberty) also designed the structural components of San Sebastian. Historian Ambeth Ocampo, while doing research in Paris, reportedly confirmed that Eiffel was involved in the church’s design. Furthermore, renowned Chinese-American Architect I.M. Pei reportedly also confirmed this during his visit to the church in the 1970s. Knowing that an Eiffel-designed structure that is in danger of rusting down to bits and pieces would definitely raise more concern and attract more donors and volunteers, the conservation foundation searched for documentary evidence that would confirm that the French engineer actually did the structural design for San Sebastian. They went back to Paris and found a list of all the structures designed by the Eiffel Company. An entry listed “Eglise de Manille” in 1875 – 13 years before the first shipment of steel sections from Belgium arrived, and five years before the previous existing stone church was destroyed by either fire or an earthquake. Finally, the Foundation had the chance to talk with the great grandson of Gustave Eiffel of the Eiffel Society in France, after a year of trying to schedule an appointment. Within minutes of their presentation, the Society declared that the church was not by Eiffel, noting that the engineer never designed in the Gothic style. They also noted that the design was too heavy to have been designed by Eiffel. The Foundation noted that all the documents they have only confirms Spanish architect Genaro Palacios as the designer. The structural engineer still remains to be a mystery. In any case, this does not diminish the fact that San Sebastian needs to be saved. The 10-year conservation project is still in its documentation stage. Their initial findings indicate that the Church’s steel columns ‘are sitting on water.’ A camera inserted from the top of one of the steel columns showed that the bottom was filled with water up to 5 meters deep. In addition, over 36 kilograms of steel parts have fallen due to severe corrosion. Many local and international individuals and organizations have joined the efforts to save the church. Dan Lichauco’s Archion Architects, the engineering firm Meinhardt, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the corrosion scientist for the Statue of Liberty Dr. Robert Baboian, and G Strip – a 3D laser scanner used to prepare the as-built drawings, have committed to provide their services pro bono. The foundation is currently searching for ideas on how to naturally ventilate the basilica’s interiors. Although beautifully designed, the tropical climate of the country may have skipped the minds of its foreign architects, the magnificent stained glass windows having no operable panels. Upon entering the San Sebastian, we were welcomed by choir music with all the lights over the nave turned on to highlight the original steel vaulted ceiling painted to mimic those of gothic stone churches. It is not unusual to hear the preaching of a priest echoing within the church walls to save souls. However, this time, it was comforting - as well as alarming - that the gospel of architectural conservation was being spoken within its glorious interiors to save the church itself. As Tina Paterno finished her slide presentation, she noted that more than 50 leaks have been detected that “when it rains, it seems like the church is weeping” from the inside. Lovers of architecture can not help but become teary-eyed witnesses as San Sebastian slowly decays because of rusting from within. The good thing is that this “illness” is not necessarily terminal. There is hope for a cure and full recovery if enough people in the local and architectural community, the church, and the government work together to save a dying loved one.
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AuthorJWHermogenes was part of the tour of San Sebastian Church during the 2011 Convention of the United Architects of the Philippines ArchivesCategories |