Notre Dame de Lourdes Cathedral (Our Lady of Lourdes Cathedral), Casablanca

Rising like a massive slab of sculpted concrete, the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes is one of Casablanca’s most unconventional religious buildings. Its stark modernist form, often compared to a monumental industrial radiator, leaves little doubt that this is not a traditional church. A small crucifix perched high above the structure is the only immediate clue to its function. Designed in a style close to modernism with brutalist tendencies, it remains unlike any other church in Morocco.

Step inside, however, and the atmosphere changes completely. The interior is dominated by towering stained-glass walls created by French artist Gabriel Loire, covering more than 8,000 square feet and composed of deep blues and reds arranged with geometric precision. Rather than narrative scenes, the windows present a symbolic visual language inspired by the life of the Virgin Mary, transforming light itself into the building’s primary decorative element.

In the church courtyard, a replica of the Grotto of Lourdes recalls the Marian apparitions experienced by Bernadette Soubirous in France. The church is no longer regularly used for Catholic worship, but remains accessible to visitors. It is valued primarily as a landmark of postwar modern religious architecture.