February 1, 2013
Good morning from Collegeville,
I truly enjoy my role as “sidewalk superintendent” here on the campus of St. John’s Abbey and University. This summer they replaced the metal roof on the Quad with a copper roof. The Brothers always think long term. A copper roof may last up to 150 years. I managed to pick up a piece about the size of a calling card. Very impressive.
In the fifties, the Abbey hired Marcel Breuer to design a new church. It was dedicated in October of 1961. Even today it is too contemporary for some folks. Breuer studied at the Bauhaus in Germany with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier. In all he designed ten buildings on the campus.
A few years ago a renovation created a Blessed Sacrament Chapel designed by the architect firm of VJAA headed by Vincent James, FAIA. During the construction I noticed workers were applying a thick layer of plaster on the ceiling. I am not a construction expert, but it struck me that they had not applied any steel mesh first. Sure enough, the next morning most of the plaster was on the floor of the new chapel. The next week the workers were securing steel mesh. The set back did not detract from the outcome. The ceiling is finished in a metallic fashion and it adds greatly to the special feeling of the room. Recently the work received yet another award from The American Institute of Architects. http://www.aia.org/practicing/awards/2013/interior-architecture/bsc/
Tomorrow you may choose to attend the Saint John’s Arboretum’s presentation of “Living in the Avon Hills; a Conference for the Whole Family, here in The Great Hall.
Simply Google “Saint John’s Arboretum”
The APHC show this week is live from The Fitzgerald Theater in frosty downtown St. Paul. Special guests include big-voiced New Orleans vocalist Topsy Chapman and Butch Thompson and His New Orleans Orphans. Plus the Royal Academy of Radio Actors, Tim Russell, Sue Scott and Fred Newman. Enjoy the show.
“It is not the experience of Today that drives men mad. It is remorse or bitterness for something that happened Yesterday and the dread of what will happen Tomorrow.” Robert J. Burdette
Category : General 