Neue Pfarrkirche Lech am Arlberg

The Neue Pfarrkirche Lech am Arlberg stands beside the cemetery wall outside the old parish church in Lech, a village in Vorarlberg. Built for the Roman Catholic community under the patronage of St Nicholas of Myra, it forms part of a protected ensemble with the nearby school centre. The copper-clad roofs and facades catch the mountain light, marking the building’s modern lines against the alpine setting.

Architect Roland Ostertag won the competition for the design, with Leopold Kaufmann handling the detailed plans. Construction began after years of debate about the cramped old church, and the striking new church opened in 1976. Inside, a gently sloping floor of grey stone slabs leads to the altar, while a wooden pultdach roof rests on sturdy glulam beams. Tall vertical light slits and a broad glass wall at the rear fill the space with changing light.

The altar is a massive half-sphere carved from Franconian Jura stone, and the tabernacle carries fine wood carving. Treasures from the old church include a late-15th-century Madonna, a carved crucifix from around 1790, and a figure of St Nicholas by Josef Klemens Witwer. A carved Zirbenholz sacristy cupboard from about 1500 shows star patterns and painted panels. On the gallery sits a weathered Bregenz gable cross, and a wooden model of the old church’s spire crowns the rear aisle. The Rieger organ of 1993, with red and blue casework and 22 speaking stops, completes the interior.