Stefano Boeri Designs Monastery for Milan's Innovation District

Stefano Boeri Architetti has unveiled plans for the Monastero Ambrosiano, a new monastery complex to be built within the Mind – Milano Innovation District, the former Expo 2015 site in Milan. Commissioned by the Diocese of Milan and presented at the Abbazia di Chiaravalle, the project is slated for completion in 2029. The design reinterprets the traditional monastic cloister as a contemporary, permeable space fostering spirituality, interfaith dialogue, and cultural exchange. The 2,700-square-meter complex will include a Chiostro delle Religioni at the intersection of the former Expo's Cardo and Decumano axes, a Giardino delle Religioni with symbolic plantings, a trigonal church seating 300–350 people with a soaring sail-like roof referencing Milan's Duomo, and a Biblioteca delle Religioni for study and events. On the library's roof, a small cherry grove will display sculptures from the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo's statuary deposits, making rarely seen heritage accessible. The project emerged from a 2023 Call for Ideas involving institutions, ecclesiastical bodies, research centers, and architecture firms, developed in dialogue with Principia, the public-private company managing the district. The monastery will host a small resident community for liturgical tradition, spaces for interreligious dialogue, and venues for humanities-science exchange with nearby universities and research centers.