Spiez
Matthäuskirche
Building data
Denomination | Evangelical Methodist
Building type | Church
Year of construction | 1898
Architect | not specified
Town, canton | Spiez, BE
Street address | Kapellenstrasse 9
GPS | 46.68352884 7.6852216
Google Maps | Swisstopo
Reuse
Year of reuse | 2017/2019
Ownership | Sale
Building interventions | Unchanged
Form of use | Shared use
Type of use | Culture
Brief information | Since May 2019, cultural events have been held in the church under the new name ‘Kulturkapelle9’.
Further information | see below
Status of information
Entry created | 2017/08
Entry last updated | 2024/02
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Further information
In 1898, a ‘religious association’ founded by local hotel pioneers commissioned the construction of St Matthew’s Church. In 1937, the Roman Catholic parish acquired the building. In 1974, there was another change of ownership: the church passed into the hands of the Evangelical Methodist Church (EMK). As the parish is now ageing and lacks the necessary resources to maintain the church, it decided to sell the building. The last service was held there on 25 June 2017. There were potential buyers, but the church was not sold and remains the property of the EMK, which has been letting it out ever since. During the 2019 Night of Culture, the ‘Klangdom’ took place there. The high ceilings and acoustics impressed visitors. This gave rise to the idea of a new concert hall in the heart of Spiez. Since March 2019, the venue has been operating under the name ‘Kulturkapelle9’. The Kultur Spiez association, of which the Kulturkapelle9 working group is a part, obtained permission from the local council permission to use the church for a period of five years for cultural and other events. The venue hosts concerts, readings, theatre productions, classes, rehearsals, meetings and other similar events. It can accommodate 150 people.