“Because it’s so quiet, because it’s so calm and so peaceful, you just chill out a little bit.”
Janelle Montgomery
Director
Keith House Skyspace
.…on the modern-day “meeting space” next to Trinity Trails in Fort Worth, via Fort Worth Report.
Near the Trinity Trails in southwest Fort Worth, an artful oasis of calm is nearing completion. The Keith House Skyspace, a commissioned installation by internationally known artist James Turrell, is a modern-day version of a traditional Quaker meeting house.
The 3,200-square-foot Keith House and its surrounding two acres aim to offer a non-sectarian gathering space. The house itself is one of Turrell’s Skyspaces, which use light as a medium “to evoke wonder and a sense of peace,” with pews arranged to face the center of the space.
“Being able to sit and talk face-to-face as opposed to … an auditorium style setup, I think we hope will engender a different tone of conversation,” Keith House director Jannelle Montgomery told Fort Worth Report.
Keith House and the Skyspace installation were conceived as a “gift to to the entire Fort Worth community” by a foundation established by the late Meta Alice Keith Bratten (pronounced “meet-ah Alice”), according to an announcement earlier this year. Keith House aims to be “where the commonalities of many spiritual explorations converge, reflecting values like truth, peace, mutual respect, and the power of silence.” Construction on it began in July 2022 on land provided by Cassco in a wooded setting near Clearfork, with Bennett Partners as architects, SpawGlass as general contractor, and The Projects Group as project managers.
Visitors at other Skyspace sites around the world have described them as “mesmerizing plays between the sky’s changing light, which is visible through a roof-top opening, and light around the ceiling perimeter, according to the release.
The center is located at 4814 Edwards Ranch Road near The Heart of the Ranch at Clearfork. Phase 1 is now open: Keith House is available for non-profit and community group events. Phase 2, the art installation, will be scheduled soon, per the organization’s website.
According to FWR, Keith House is around 90% completed.
You can read the Fort Worth Report story here.
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