|
The first religious center built for New York's Muslim
community, the Center comprises a mosque, an assembly room, and a minaret.
Rotated on the site to face Mecca, the building has a square configuration that
supports the copper-clad, precast dome. Its facades are composed as nine-square
patterns that express the four large structural trusses which provide a
column-free worship hall. At the main entrance, 15-foot high bronze doors open
to reveal an abstract arch motif of layers of glass cut in rectilinear patterns.
Modern Kufic inscriptions are carved in granite above the doors. Inside the
prayer space echoing the entry portal is the mihrab. This prayer niche, adorned
with cut-glass panels and a frieze of Koran verses, becomes the focus of the
interior
|
