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Origin and history

The Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix chapel, known as the "Fuzita Chapel", is a Roman Catholic building built in 1966 in Reims, in the Romanesque style. It is the work of the Japanese painter Léonard Foujita, converted to Catholicism in 1959 after a mystical experience at the Basilica of St.Remi. Foujita, supported by her godfather René Lalou (director of the Mumm House), conceived this place as a tribute to his faith and sacred art, inspired by Pope John XXIII's encyclical Pacem in Terris (1963), advocating universal peace.

Foujita personally supervises the interior decoration, creating frescoes with a fresco technique and designing stained glass windows executed by master glassmaker Charles Marq. The themes represent biblical scenes, such as the Nativity, the Crucifixion or the Resurrection, mixed with Champagne motifs. The architect Maurice Clauzier, chosen for his respectful approach to the Romanesque style, works closely with the artist through epistolic exchanges. The chapel, blessed on October 1, 1966, was handed over to the city of Reims on October 18, 1966.

The monument houses the burials of Foujita (died 1968) and his wife Kimiyo (2009), after successive transfers to respect his wishes. The building, inscribed in historical monuments in 1992, is part of the tradition of 20th-century artists' chapels, such as those of Matisse to Vence or Le Corbusier to Ronchamp. Its sober exterior, marked by a calvary to the child Christ and Christian symbols (pastal lamb, interlaced fish), contrasts with the richness of its interior.

The frescoes, made in 1966 when Foujita was 80 years old, bear witness to her admiration for the Mexican muralism of Diego Rivera, met in Paris in the 1910s. The stained glass windows, evoking the life of Champagne, interact with the sacred scenes. The chapel, open to the public, attracts thousands of visitors every year (10,546 in 2019), celebrating the alliance between spirituality and artistic creation.

The building is part of a movement of renewal of sacred art in France, carried by figures like Father Couturier, who has associated major artists (Chagall, Matisse, Léger) with religious projects. Foujita, through this monument, realizes her dream of an "autonomous religious ensemble" integrating all Western artistic expressions, while honoring her adopted city, Reims.

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