Eternal life: having established his reputation applying monastic architectural principles to the home and the high street, minimalism comes full circle with John in the Czech Republic.Pawson's design for a new monastery

Architectural Review, The, April, 2004

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Set within 100 acres (40 hectares) of land, 150 kilometres west of Prague, work began on site in the winter of 2000, and is due for completion in September 2004. For a project that curiously began with Calvin Klein, it seemed appropriate for the America fashion designer to make a short visit to the site, after which, instead of donating money, he offered his own design input. So, not only will the Monks be living in the first monastery of the new millennium, but following the examples set by Barragan and Matisse, they may also have designer robes. Meanwhile, for Pawson, this circle is now complete. With this ambition fulfilled, where will he go from here? Will his recent work on the M&S Lifestore concept really change how lay people live their lives, or as some fear, will it be soon be forgotten as a short-term lifestyle fad? Who knows? But perhaps, following the many prayers read by the monks before each design presentation, he now has God on his side.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Architect

John Pawson Architects, London

Project team

Vishwa Kaushal, Pierre Saalburg, Stephane Orsolini

Executive architect

Jan Soukup

Site engineer

Antonin Svehla

Photographs

John Pawson, Stepan Bartos, Richard Davies

Novy Dvur, the existing site, 1999.

'Even in ruins it is very beautiful-it has soul, it is true'.

Br M. - Patrick Olive, Abbot of Sep-Fons