Field Session

FRI-FS-01: The Modernist Campus of St. John’s University and Monastery

Friday, October 27, 2023

7:15am – 5:00pm CT

5.25 PDH, LA CES/HSW, AIA/HSW, AICP, FL, NY/HSW
Ticket price: $165 per person; includes transportation and catered lunch. Moderate walking.

Field Session Leader(s)

Joseph R. Favour, ASLA (he/him/his)

Associate Professor in Practice
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Thomas R. Oslund, FASLA, FAAR

Founder/ Director of Design
O2 Design
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Field Session Presenter(s)

Robin Pierzina

O.S.B., Chair
St. John's University
Peggy Roske, MLIS (she/her/hers)

Archivist
St. John's University
Collegeville, Minnesota

Explore St. John’s University—a modernist campus set in a stunning landscape of lakes and forests in rural Minnesota—to understand how Benedictine traditions and a commitment to design excellence have shaped this unique college and monastic community.

Learning Outcomes:

Learn how Benedictine traditions of land stewardship, education, and environmental respect shape the campus landscape and create a self-reliant campus/monastic community.
Understand how campus design principles are maintained in new projects and how St. John’s Design Committee acts as a guardian of design quality.
Experience the remarkable natural and managed campus context, including restored wetlands, several lakes, an oak savanna, a prairie, and hiking trails that wind through an extensive pine and hardwood forest.
Explore projects by renowned modernists Dan Kiley and Marcel Breuer, as well as contemporary work by Tom Oslund and others.