Saint Benedict Chapel

Sumvitg, Graubünden, Switzerland 1988

Photo by jonathanvlarocca, December 2005. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by William, November 2009. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Jonathan Lin, June 2010. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Adrian Michael, August 2008. Creative Commons on Wikimedia.org

Photo by Pedro Varela, April 2007. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Pedro Varela, April 2007. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Carlos Castro, December 2015. © Carlos Castro

Photo by fcamusd, March 2012. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by fcamusd, March 2012. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by p2cl, August 2006. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Carlos Castro, December 2015. © Carlos Castro

Photo by Jonathan Lin, June 2010. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by p2cl, August 2006. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Photo by Timothy Brown, June 2008. Creative Commons on Flickr.com

Description

Saint Benedict Chapel is a small, local chapel in Sumvitg, Switzerland. It was completed in 1988. The chapel was built to replace a older building that was destroyed in an avalance. The commisioners wished for a contemporary expression, but at the same time something that could serve for generations. Zumthor gave it a special shape to distinguish it it from "usual", secular buildings. It is built from wood, a traditional building material in the region. As many other projects of Zumthor it is characterised by a special harmony and expressiveness, that rises from a meticioulus attention to detail, and a minimalistic approach, where all components and elements have their purpose.