Hillsdale College’s Christ Chapel Recognized by WSJ as among the “The Best Architecture of 2019”
List featured a variety of structures from around the U.S.
Hillsdale, Mich. – Hillsdale College’s Christ Chapel was featured in the Wall Street Journal’s list of “The Best Architecture of 2019: Built to Be Experienced Off-Screen.” The list features seven architectural structures from around the country with unique designs.
Highlighting Christ Chapel’s classical style, Wall Street Journal architectural critic Michael J. Lewis praised the structure, saying, “In every respect—in construction, ornament and especially its siting—Christ Chapel sparkles, and shows that the rules of classical architecture are no more an impediment to imaginative design than the rules of grammar are to imaginative speech.”
Christ Chapel was designed by prominent architect and University of Notre Dame professor Duncan Stroik. Stroik has designed several religious spaces in the United States, including Thomas Aquinas College Chapel in California and the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Wisconsin. The chapel’s design complements Hillsdale College’s Central Hall and is modeled after the English church St. Martin-in-the-Fields, which was the inspiration for Philadelphia’s famous Christ Church.
Featuring a 64-foot painted barrel ceiling, 14 columns, arched windows, and wooden pews, Christ Chapel is capable of seating 1,350 people and is located in the middle of the Hillsdale College campus. The construction for the building began in March 2017 and was completed in September 2019. It was officially dedicated in conjunction with Hillsdale College’s 175th anniversary celebration on October 3, 2019.