Designed for an order of monks dedicated to discipline and learning, the monastery project required the application of a grid system to a complex scheme of personal, private, and transitional spaces. This design features a basic square defining the horizontal private areas with an order-defying public chapel extension emphasizing the vertical thrust.
The private monastic areas and and the public chapel each require different spaces. To vary ceiling heights and thus spatial qualities, various parts of the monastery are sunk into the earth while maintaining their ceiling level. In this way, exterior proportions remain pleasing while, at the same time, interior dimensions instill the proper awe or humility.
Critic
Ivan Zaknic
Date
Spring 1997
