St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish: Charlottesville, VA

Photos by: Stephen Barling

St. Thomas Aquinas, a vibrant and growing Dominican Order-staffed parish serving the Catholic students of the University of Virginia and the local community, sought to replace an aging central-plan church with a more traditional and durable design capable of seating its expanding congregation.

The design combines traditional Virginia brick with Romanesque detailing and a liturgical cruciform plan with fan-shaped seating, improving circulation and sightlines and expressing a true sense of the sacred which instructs by form and symbol. Design began in 2016 and was completed in 2020.

At UVA, Jefferson employed a classical language of red brick and white wood. Much of the campus follows this lead. We utilized similar brick and pale cast stone, with complementary if distinct Byzantine and Romanesque details. The design serves as a sacred parallel and commentary on Jefferson’s UVA.

The secularist Jefferson placed his iconic library at UVA’s center, representing reason and learning. We placed a sacred dome at the church’s center. Our rotunda is contained within a Byzantine-style square cross plan. Altar and furnishings were crafted to our design in Italy and are of Carrara marble, embellished with relief carvings and contrasting colonnettes of Rosso Barocco stone. Stone flooring features Cosmatesque-inspired patterns in similar rich colors. Above are wood ceilings and expansive arches that span the Transepts, creating a rhythmic serenade around the dome. Despite its relatively low height (55 feet), we feel the sensation of a great volumetric expression.