Today we're pleased to present yet another instalment in the ever-popular 'before and after' series, and today we also get to introduce to our readers a new architectural firm: C.J. Howard Architecture. The project in question involves renovations that were undertaken at Bishop Ireton High School's St. Francis de Sales chapel by C.J. Howard, an architect and the Director of the School of Architecture and Planning at the Catholic University of America.
The project involved taking a typical, rather lack lustre bit of mid 1960's ecclesiastical architecture and giving it a more genuinely ecclesiastical look and feel, not only on the inside (where we usually are focused in 'before and after's') but also on the exterior. So let's begin right there and take a look at the chapel and how it looked, both inside and out.
BEFORE
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| Exterior side and main entrance |
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| Exterior from side and back |
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| Main entrance and narthex |
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| Chapel interior (before) |
As you will see, the exterior and the narthex were rather lacklustre to say the least; nothing in those elements would really suggest this building was ecclesiastical in purpose and it could as well have been an office building as anything else.
Interiorly, it was much better but still pretty mediocre. I suspect the itnerior was likely updated at some point in its recent history as this sort of colour palette was not what was popular in the mid 1960's. Evidently someone here had some sense of the liturgical tradition as they have even employed a traditional altar frontal for the altar -- well done on that front. But all things considered, there was lots of room for improvement, and if we're honest, the exterior was a significant problem.
I have already mentioned C.J. Howard Architecture, but other firms were also engaged in this particular project as well; from Beyer Studio (who provided the stained glass -- some of which is still in progress), St. Jude Liturgical Art Studio (who provided the statuary), Penny Hauffe (a local painter who did the decorative paintwork for the project) and Canisius Johnson and Jozsa Millwork who executed the woodwork, including the Stations of the Cross and wooden sanctuary furnishings.
So what did they do to this space? Let's take a look -- and be forewarned, you're going to have difficulty recognizing that this is the same building, but be assured that it is.
AFTER:
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| Main entrance |
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| Main entrance and side |
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| Exterior from side and back (this is the view which can best link together the before and after for the exterior) |
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| Narthex |
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| Chapel interior |
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| Detail of "altar of sacrifice" and "altar of reservation" |
An extremely impressive project.
We're pleased to also be able to share with our reader a bit more about this specific project, as well as C.J. Howard Architecture, by way of this interview they did about the project.
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How did the project come about? Why was it important to renovate this High School Chapel?
Bishop Michael Burbidge came to The Catholic Diocese of Arlington in 2016. The Diocese is relatively new having been established in 1974 when many new churches were constructed and designed in “the spirit of the time”. One of Bishop Burbidge’s initiatives upon arrival was to reinvest in the architecture of the churches and chapels old and new, with a mindset of bringing tradition back into the fold. Of particular interest to the Bishop is the Catholic High school Chapels, being seen as a priority and opportunity for evangelization to reach young Catholics. Bishop Ireton Catholic High School, established by the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, can be considered geographically and in status, central to the Diocese. The existing structure was a very nondescript art deco, flat-roofed, box with ambiguous Catholic expression that provided very little presence on the campus. Further, it was not efficiently configured to maximize seating for students and it was in need of maintenance upgrades. Kathleen McNutt, Bishop Ireton alum, and the newly appointed head of school in 2019 was charged with rectifying that situation immediately upon her appointment. This led to a Request for Proposals to find an architecture firm that could elevate the Catholicity, and presence of the chapel on campus in a more timeless language, toward the ultimate goal of increasing use and spiritual growth.
Why was C.J. Howard Architecture, the right architecture firm for this job? What is your background for Liturgical projects such as these?
On learning of the project I thought that I would be a great fit for the commission, being a long time resident in the diocese, and having extensive experience with high quality traditional Catholic church work.
I have been a practicing architect for two decades, and in that time I have been blessed with being exposed to the practice of excellent traditional architecture while being given opportunities to work on significant ecclesiastical projects that benefit from the richness of tradition. I have always appreciated and recognized the connection between tradition within the liturgy and in architecture. This pairing has historically resulted in successful works of architecture that resonate through time and across space with meaning and beauty to elevate prayer, educate and accommodate Liturgy. The Church has a rich heritage of celebrating its patrimony through various traditional languages, while keeping the tradition alive and responsive to different cultures, places and times. I find the notion of participating in this living tradition very rewarding and exciting.
Prior to establishing my own firm and beginning a full-time teaching position at The Catholic University of America, I served as lead Project Architect at McCrery Architects in Washington, DC, guiding the design and construction of major ecclesiastical projects, both to benefit vibrant and growing catholic communities on university campuses as well as expanding dioceses. Some of those projects include: a new Thomas Aquinas Chapel and Blessed John Newman Student Center at the University of Nebraska (Lincoln), a renovated Saint John Paul the Great Chapel at the University of St. Mary of the Lake, a new Sacred Heart Cathedral in Knoxville, and a New Christ the King Chapel for Franciscan University of Steubenville, several of which have been recognized and awarded.
With this experience I have been able to establish my own young firm offering my gifts in service to the church and doing the work I love. I consider this aspect of my professional career vocational, in the sense that it is very rewarding to share personal gifts for greater good.
What were the design priorities and challenges and how were they accomplished and addressed through process and decision making?
The design priorities and challenges were:
- To provide an exterior presence and prominence that could be seen from a distance on approach to the school from a major arterial in Old Town Alexandria, and from on the Schools’ campus.
- Architectural Response – In theory a spaceship could land on campus and have a “presence”. Using “conventional” architectural forms, geometries, and proportions keep the presence civil and appropriate. Given the existing flat roof, benign beige brick finish, and ecclesiastical ambiguity, additional massing elements of a tower, entry portal and steep pitched roof, were employed. Having these elements that are traditionally associated with churches (think Rome) contributes to the “Churchness” of the building as being a recognizable type. The Tower acts as a beacon from a distance, the portal provides a new front door location off of the central dropoff circle on axes with the Altar and indicates transition from the mundane to the sacred, the roof acts much like a crossing dome as a visual reference to the sanctuary within. To provide a more dignified, attractive chapel exterior through employment of traditional Catholic architectural language Architectural Response –What also contributes to the chapels “Churchness” and civility or presence, is the aesthetic expression. This was a notable challenge in the design process as the original chapel was rendered in a datable art deco expression. While relatively understated here, it still had an explicit streamlined, machine-like, modernist quality which was difficult to ignore, presenting a challenge in thinking of ways to adapt with a more explicitly traditional design. In the design process a range of iterations were explored from a more deco-sympathetic version to the more canonically classical. The ultimate answer came in the form of the Romanesque as an intentional design strategy to bridge the languages of Art Deco and a more explicitly traditional Catholic church architecture such as the Gothic or Classical. By adopting the Romanesque there was some reconciliation with the Deco via the shared characteristics and reliance on a collection of simple massing forms with flourishes of ornament in key locations, while still evolving the design in a humanistic direction and offering an identifiable character historically associated Christian works of architecture.
- Symbols and imagery were incorporated into the fa̤ade details that reference the figures of Saint Francis de Sales Рcoat of arms finial, Bishop Ireton Рbishop mitre motif and school symbols Рcardinal bird mascot/dove. One of the primary design precedent influences came from the very church that St. Francis and St. Jane Frances De Chantal are buried within - Visitation Basilica and Convent in Annecy, France.
- To provide a more accommodating and present interior space.
- Architectural Response – The spatial layout of the chapel and adjacent areas had some meat still left on the bone. There was also a lack of celebrated and clear connection with the rest of the school from the inside, when attempting to approach the chapel. The main exterior entrance was originally located on the side and access from the inside by-passed the chapel with a generous corridor, as if it was a classroom, only to arrive at an exit with an exterior porch condition. To purchase more space and maximize seating, the design absorbed into the chapel space both the exterior porch and the corridor section in front of the chapel, effectively providing a Narthex and additional seating toward the new entrance. The corridor was further treated with compartmentalized sections using pilasters, ceiling elements and floor patterns, that lead to a statue of St. Francis on Axes where the exit once was. This along with the new entrance and established Narthex interventions elevate the sequential experience anticipating the Chapel’s main space.
- In the main Chapel space existing elements such as the confessionals cluttered the space and the sanctuary wall configurations offered little resolution, and so were relocated and demolished leaving the clarity of a well-proportioned box, reminiscent of a Hall Church, with Sanctuary elements on end.
- To provide a more dignified, attractive, interior and sacred sanctuary.
- Architectural Response – The existing chapel was very iconoclastically spare to include abstract stained glass windows (still to be replaced). To combat the uncomfortable visual silence a variety of elements were introduced to the space. In the Nave, plaster bulkhead beams and brackets that speak to the Art deco and Romanesque tradition, wainscot millwork and on the main axes a floor pattern fashioned from cork, were added, leading the eye toward the sanctuary.
- The most visual emphasis resides in the Sanctuary with a family of three main wood wall elements: two shrines for St. Mary and St. Joseph, of Portiuncula reference, flanking a Reredos back wall from which a tester/ciborium element is both supported by columns at the back and is mysteriously cantilevered over the Altars with floating capitals on the front. This element is constructed to frame/house the new Holy Spirit lunette stained glass window that allows a new light into the space that previously did not exist. All three elements are designed as more explicitly Romanesque and early Christian. Throughout are carved moments of particular and universal imagery that speak to biblical specificity. The Capitals and for each of the columns in the Sanctuary were opportunities for historic and biblical reference. The decorative floral motifs on the capitals with columns, and wall panels, allude to the Garden of Eden, while the floating capitals feature the school’s cardinal mascot.
- The three sanctuary furnishing elements of the Ambo, Altar of Repose, and Altar of Sacrifice follow suit:
- The Ambo is designed as a pedestalled framework for the spoken word featuring a bas relief of the four evangelists representative of the gospels.
- The Altar of Sacrifice as a sign of Christ includes a central bas relief of a lamb (Agnus Dei) with seven seals as described in revelation in reference to Christ, and as exclaimed in the Gospel of John, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world." On either side of the central lamb fixtures are the two characters of Alpha and Omega as yet another reference to Christ as the beginning and end, the source and summit through the Eucharist.
- Both the Altar of Sacrifice and Repose have a Carrara marble mensa top.
- The Stations of the Cross are microcosms of the side shrines belonging to the architectural family of Sanctuary furnishings. Each frame presents itself as a portal into each scene of the Passion.
- It was decided, at the preference of the owner, to construct all of these elements out of red-hued Cherry wood with a natural finish to reflect the school colors, to enhance the natural beauty and to present a more humble, softer, somewhat domestic character seen as decorously fitting for a high school chapel. The wood finish was further enhanced by applying Polychromatic accent paint to give the elements a gem-like quality as described in Revelations accounts.
- In all, the Sanctuary is given a human scale, richness, nobility and transcendent character that helps to educate, accommodate liturgy and elevate prayer.
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