Lin's Latest

The design "supports the mission of CDF," says Lin.

Staff -- Interior Design, 8/31/2004

Architect and artist Maya Lin, best known for her design of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., recently completed her second building. The nondenominational Riggio-Lynch Chapel at the Children’s Defense Fund’s Haley Farm Freedom School in Clinton, Tennessee was dedicated last month.

The 3,400-square-foot Riggio-Lynch Chapel, named in honor of its main benefactor, Leonard Riggio, chairman of Barnes & Noble, and William Lynch, former deputy mayor of New York, comprises three structures situated adjacent to an apple orchard and a pond on the 157-acre property. The heart of the design is the main building—an abstracted ark made of cypress siding, a fir roof-deck and beams, and a Medite interior.

An open courtyard links the chapel’s main structure to two smaller, concrete buildings--an office wing and an area that serves as a meeting room, chapel and bell tower.

"The Chapel’s ark-inspired design supports the mission of CDF and its Freedom Schools to carry the nation’s family of children to safe harbor. Architecturally, my goal was to quietly raise people’s hope and elevate their spirits through beautiful surroundings, and in turn, to demonstrate that they are valued," said Lin.