Projects by Name

In 1953, Abbot Baldwin Dworschak sent letters to twelve, well-known modern architects hoping to interest them in designing a new monastery for the abbey. Recipients of the letter included Breuer, Pietro Belluschi, Walter Gropius, Richard Neutra and Eero Saarinen. Breuer eventually received the commission, devising a "Comprehensive 100-Year Plan" for the abbey and for the liberal arts college run by the abbey, Saint John's University. Dworschak gave Breuer and his eventual partner, Hamilton Smith, control over every aspect of the design, including landscaping, furniture, and choice of art works. The office began work on the plan in May of 1953 and would build the church with its distinctive campanile, a monastery building, a new library and class room buildings over the course of two decades. Hamilton Smith also independently designed an annex to the library, the Hill Monastic Manuscript Library, Bush Center. Only a portion of the materials related to Saint John's Abbey have been digitized at this point. See below for a complete list of buildings:

Monastery Wing; Residence Hall I; Church and Campanile; Library; Science Building; Residence Hall II; Campus Center (Student Union and Swimming Pavilion); Institute for Ecumenical and Cultural Research; Hill Monastic Manuscript Library, Bush Center