Ceppa Memorial Chapel  |  Meriden, CT

Realized as pure geometry this cemetery chapel achieves a strong and dignified structure appropriate to its function and setting as funerary chapel. The structure is an open octagonal pavilion with steel gates of an abstract silhouette design installed at each of the eight openings.

The centrally designed, octagon shaped chapel places an emphasis on geometric harmony and proportion - recalling classical references to ‘cosmic order’ associated with the rigorous use of geometry and the tradition of central planning in votive design. Here we find a thoroughly modern realization of the central plan, achieved on a human scale and with a solemnity appropriate to the chapel’s function.

The entire chapel, including the eight columns, the roof, and the floor is clad in two inch thick granite. The stone tiling is shaped in direct relationship to project’s global geometries, thereby creating a continuous surface who’s texture operates in synch with the project’s overall massing. This tight linkage between surface and form is made in order to reference a systemic unity and universality appropriate to the chapel’s function and context.

The project was awarded a Building and Stone magazine citation.