Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus
Church
Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus, located in Wattrelos (Nord), is a modern edifice built in the 19th-20th centuries. The monument is currently closed to visitors.
Key facts
- Type
- Church
- Period
- Modern (19th-20th century)
- Location
- Wattrelos, Nord, Hauts-de-France
- Visit
- Closed to visitors
- GPS
- 50.6988, 3.2039
- Mérimée Reference
- PA59000115
An Art Deco jewel in the North of France, this Wattrelos church, dedicated to Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, dazzles visitors with its homogenous décor entirely devoted to the symbol of the rose, featuring Desvres ceramics and bewitchingly colourful stained glass windows.
History
Nestled in the Laboureur district of Wattrelos, the Church of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus is much more than a mere place of worship: it is a coherent artistic statement, a rare architectural gem where every surface, every opening and every piece of furniture contributes to an overall aesthetic vision. Listed as a Historic Monument in 2005, it stands as one of the finest examples of religious Art Deco in northern France. What immediately strikes the visitor is the power of the symbol that governs the whole: the rose. An iconography intimately linked to the Theresian devotion — Saint Thérèse of Lisieux promised to ‘make a shower of roses fall’ from the sky —, the flower appears in endless variations on the capitals, ironwork, ceramic tiles and coloured stained-glass windows. The building functions as an ornamental grammar in which the rose is the fundamental letter, repeated, varied and sublimated. The interior exudes a unique atmosphere, halfway between the solemnity of a Gothic cathedral and the luminous warmth of the great American churches of the turn of the 20th century. The stained-glass windows, created in two successive phases—by David and Lesage between 1930 and 1936, Duthoit and Rouland for the period 1947–1964 — bathe the nave in coloured light that changes with the time of day, offering visitors an ever-changing sensory experience. The ceramics by Charles Fourmaintraux-Delassus, produced in the renowned workshops of Desvres (Pas-de-Calais), add a touch of artisanal refinement that anchors the building in the great decorative tradition of the North. Each ceramic panel is a work of art in its own right, worthy of the most ambitious applied arts of the interwar period. Visiting Sainte-Thérèse de Wattrelos is to immerse oneself in a world that is both spiritual and aesthetic, where popular devotion has inspired a work of remarkable formal rigour. A monument that photographers, Art Deco enthusiasts and lovers of religious history should not miss.
Architecture
The Church of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus is built of reconstituted stone, that is to say, moulded cement aggregate, a material characteristic of building sites between the two world wars which allowed architects to combine economy of means with artistic freedom. This technique allows for complex ornamental profiles, reproducing at lower cost the reliefs traditionally carved from natural stone, whilst giving them a surface unity characteristic of Art Deco aesthetics. Externally, the overall volume is organised according to an elongated plan typical of parish churches, with a façade whose geometric treatment and lines, soberly adorned with stylised floral motifs, immediately betray the Art Deco influence. The vertical composition of the façade, centred on a central portal flanked by pilasters, recalls American buildings of the same period, notably the modernised Neo-Gothic churches of the Midwest, a source of inspiration acknowledged by the architect Charles Bourgeois. The interior is striking for its absolute decorative unity. The single, high and light-filled nave is punctuated by semicircular arches whose keystones and imposts feature the rose motif in all its variations. The stained-glass windows by the David and Lesage workshops, and later by Duthoit and Rouland, distributed across all the windows, create a colour palette dominated by reds, golds and blues, in harmony with the polychrome ceramics by Fourmaintraux-Delassus arranged in friezes and panels on the walls. All the liturgical furnishings—altars, baptismal fonts, woodwork—share the same ornamental style, making the building a total work of art in the fullest sense of the term.
Related Figures
Abbé Delebart — curé fondateur, issu d'une famille d'industriels du textile, maître d'ouvrage et principal mécène de l'égliseCharles Bourgeois — architecte tourquennois, concepteur de l'édifice, représentant du modernisme Art déco régionalCharles Fourmaintraux-Delassus — céramiste de Desvres, auteur des décors céramiques polychromes de l'intérieurDavid et Lesage — maîtres verriers, auteurs de la première campagne de vitraux (1930-1936)Duthoit et Rouland — maîtres verriers, auteurs de la seconde campagne de vitraux (1947-1964)Sainte Thérèse de Lisieux (Thérèse Martin) — sainte patronne de l'église, canonisée en 1925, dont le culte de la rose inspire l'ensemble du programme décoratif
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Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus located?
Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus is located in Wattrelos, Nord department, Hauts-de-France region, France.
When was Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus built?
Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus dates back to a period built in the modern era (19th-20th century).
Is Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus open to visitors?
Eglise Sainte-Thérèse de l'Enfant-Jésus is currently closed to visitors.