Munich: St. Pius

1931 – 1932

Architect: Richard Berndl

Piusstraße 7, Munich, Germany

Sankt Pius is a listed Roman Catholic parish church in the Berg am Laim district of Munich. It belongs to the Munich-Perlach deanery.

Designed by Richard Berndl and built between 1931 and 1932, the church is one of the Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity) sacred buildings in southern Germany.

Neuramersdorf

The construction of the church was part of the planning for the large Neuramersdorf housing estate.

Richard Berndl was the architect of the church and was also significantly involved in planning the new settlement.

Sankt Pius

The foundation stone of St. Pius was laid on 28 June 1931.

It was consecrated by Cardinal Michael von Faulhaber on 4 April 1932.

The church is a washed brick building with a monumental eaves-side façade and an open portal vestibule.

Interior

Inside, St. Pius is a simple pilaster church with a wooden ceiling and a flat chancel bearing traces of the New Building style.

Originally, the chancel featured a large fresco of the enthroned Christ by Ludwig Magnus Hotter. The nave featured frescoes depicting the twelve apostles.

Today, only the four evangelists depicted on the pulpit, also by Hotter, remain as a testament to these works.

Artworks

The fourteen Stations of the Cross, which are painted on copper plates on the pillars of the nave, were designed by the artist Albert Figel.

The wood carvings, including the large cross in the sanctuary, were created by Josef Henselmann.

The bronze work, including the tabernacle, the ambo depicting Christ teaching, and the six candlesticks, was designed by the sculptor Max Faller.

Windows

The coloured glass windows, designed by the painter Wilhelm Braun in the 1960s, were executed by the Gustav van Treeck Werkstätten für Mosaik und Glasmalerei company.

Destruction and Reconstruction

On 12 July 1944, the church was severely damaged in a bombing raid, and the adjacent rectory was completely destroyed.

Reconstruction began after the war. The parsonage was ready for occupancy again in 1950.