Inspired by the landscape of Pere-Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, Lakewood follows the distinctly Americanized tradition of the Lawn Plan cemetery—a mix of large family monuments and individual grave markers arranged within open, sweeping lawns framed by masses of trees and softly curving roads.With an existing mausoleum nearing capacity, Lakewood developed a plan for a new 24,500 SF Mausoleum that includes burial space for more than 10,000 people, a chapel, reception center, and landscaping on four acres.Challenged with adding a large structure to a much-beloved place, the design team developed a strategy that protected and enhanced the cemetery’s historic landscape. Two-thirds of the program is tucked into a hillside to minimize the massing at the street level.
A green roof planted over the lower level extends the cemetery’s lawn while angled grass mounds articulate skylights for the building’s subterranean spaces.At the Mausoleum’s entry, a white mosaic pattern rendered in infinite loops across white billowing surfaces reimagines the historic Lakewood Chapel’s colorful mosaic interiors. Horizontal bands of split-faced gray granite tie the structure to the earth. Bronze doors usher visitors into a serene space of mahogany walls, marble floors and abundant daylight.
A generously-scaled stair draws visitors from the entry to the lower garden level. Stretching east, a single hallway strings together alternating bays of columbarium and crypt rooms. While geometrically similar, each chamber is distinguished by subtle design variations. Inset floors of luminous onyx alternate between honey, green, and pink. Window and skylight orientations rotate and shift between rooms, variously framing views to near or distant horizons, up to the tree canopy or clear blue sky.Throughout, the contrast of textures—light and dark, rough and smooth, rustic and refined—calls upon both visual and tactile senses to offer a peaceful place for contemplation and remembrance.
Inspired by the landscape of Pere-Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, Lakewood follows the distinctly Americanized tradition of the Lawn Plan cemetery—a mix of large family monuments and individual grave markers arranged within open, sweeping lawns framed by masses of trees and softly curving roads.With an existing mausoleum nearing capacity, Lakewood developed a plan for a new 24,500 SF Mausoleum that includes burial space for more than 10,000 people, a chapel, reception center, and landscaping on four acres.Challenged with adding a large structure to a much-beloved place, the design team developed a strategy that protected and enhanced the cemetery’s historic landscape. Two-thirds of the program is tucked into a hillside to minimize the massing at the street level.
A green roof planted over the lower level extends the cemetery’s lawn while angled grass mounds articulate skylights for the building’s subterranean spaces.At the Mausoleum’s entry, a white mosaic pattern rendered in infinite loops across white billowing surfaces reimagines the historic Lakewood Chapel’s colorful mosaic interiors. Horizontal bands of split-faced gray granite tie the structure to the earth. Bronze doors usher visitors into a serene space of mahogany walls, marble floors and abundant daylight.
A generously-scaled stair draws visitors from the entry to the lower garden level. Stretching east, a single hallway strings together alternating bays of columbarium and crypt rooms. While geometrically similar, each chamber is distinguished by subtle design variations. Inset floors of luminous onyx alternate between honey, green, and pink. Window and skylight orientations rotate and shift between rooms, variously framing views to near or distant horizons, up to the tree canopy or clear blue sky.Throughout, the contrast of textures—light and dark, rough and smooth, rustic and refined—calls upon both visual and tactile senses to offer a peaceful place for contemplation and remembrance.