For a school in tune with philosophy and theology, the cerebral design of the Thomas Aquinas College Chapel in Santa Paula, CA, is a perfect fit. The chapel features an extensive amount of detailed stonework throughout, and it expresses some of the school’s main principles through its architecture.

“I like to think of this church as a very intellectual statement, perfect for philosophers,” said Principal Designer Duncan Stroik of Duncan G. Stroik Architect, LLC of South Bend, IN, which served as the Design Architect for the project. “The goal was to create a stunning chapel for the 21st century that would embody the principles of beauty, transcendence and permanence as a reflection of the college’s mission. The architecture was also meant to reflect some of the greatest buildings that have been ever built.”

Additionally, the chapel design needed to match its surrounding campus environment, while also adhering to present day standards. “I like to call the campus a ‘Shangri-La’ — it is in a beautiful hidden valley surrounded by mountains,” said Stroik. “We sought to add to this incredible ‘natural architecture.’ We also needed to deal with modern needs and codes all within the budget. We made many decisions to try and accommodate all of those things.”

Material selection

The church interior features 20 Botticino columns with Apuano bases, and their placement also helped dictate the overall floor pattern.

As the design architect, Stroik was involved with the selection of the interior and exterior materials. He proposed utilizing Indiana limestone for exterior details which ended up being competitive with cast stone. Pieces were hand-carved by Bybee Stone Co. of Bloomington, IN. “We tried to carry the limestone into the interior, but the client became convinced that it deserved marble,” said Stroik, adding that the marble was supplied by Savema S.p.A of Pietrasanta, Italy.

In choosing the marble, the late Thomas E. Dillon, Thomas Aquinas College’s President during the design phase, and Stroik took several trips to Italy to review potential materials and hand-pick slabs. “The President would go to visit buildings in Europe and the U.S. to see how the marbles were used,” said Stroik. “He was always traveling, fundraising for the college and at the same time, looking at materials. There was a lot of hands-on decision making by the client.”

According to Stroik, Dillon was after beautiful materials that had a simple and natural elegance. “Any material that was at eye level should be real in his mind,” he said.

A final decision was made for the church interior to include 20 carved Botticino Classico columns with Apuano marble bases. “We were able to get big blocks, and the goal was to make four columns out of each block,” Stroik said. “The President liked the Botticino because he wanted the columns to look similar in color and veining.”