Welcome to Bonnevaux
Centre for Peace International Meditation Retreat Centre of the WCCM
Bonnevaux
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Bonnevaux is dedicated to a better future for humanity. It is rooted in a living tradition of peace and understands the power of gentleness over force. It helps to create hope for a new world order that begins with inner transformation.
Bonnevaux
Through the sustained support of many individuals and organisations over the past three years the first phase vision has been achieved. The core community is settled in the Abbaye. And we are receiving guests for retreats and conferences in person in the Stables Guesthouse and Barn. Our online programme has taken off powerfully during the pandemic as a way of reaching as many people as possible with the gift of meditation. We have reached the next phase: a contemplative village with 25 simple ‘cells’ and a network of beautiful gardens designed to elevate the spirit. In their annual growth cycle the gardens will keep alive the memory of those for whom they have been named. This phase needs financial support and we invite you to participate. As you will see below, donors can help to complete the vision in two ways. Firstly, by sponsoring a cell which will be for your use whenever you come to Bonnevaux – a permanent place of peace to remember even when you are not there in person. Secondly, a garden may also be sponsored in named memory of a loved one or of your family or special cause. --Director Laurence
FREEMAN OSB NG Lead Architect Angelene CHAN Financial Planning Bertrand BOUHOUR Senior Advisor Peter
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CONTENTS
I Why Is Bonnevaux Coming To Be
II The Journey So Far
III The Journey Ahead i. Personal Retreat Cells & Meeting Room ii. The Gardens of Bonnevaux
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Abbaye de Bonnevaux
Bonnevaux
800 Years dedicated to ‘peace as our quest and aim’ (Rule of St Benedict 6th century)
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I Why Is Bonnevaux Coming To Be
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A Historical Palimpest [Opposite] Church and the monastery of Bonnevaux. Abbey plan of Bonnevaux in 1824. Church, Cloister, and the Convent Buildings [Above ] Restes du Cloître de l’ancienne abbaye
9 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
At first sight it felt clear that this peaceful and beautiful place should be the international home of the WCCM as a centre where friendship across all differences and divisions could flourish, locally and globally.
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11 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
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From day one, it was clear, that this place would become The Bonnevaux Meditation Retreat, the future home of the WCCM and a place to promote peace on many levels: from the internal and local to the global and geo-political.
13 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
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65 hectares of woods, fields and pasture
15 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
POITIERS
SITE
[ Above ] Location The site is located twenty minutes by car from Poitiers-Biard International Airport, with flights to the British Isles. The TGV train from Poitiers station takes 90-minutes to Paris, which can also be reached via the A10 motorway in 3 hours [ Below ] Buildings in Bonnevaux, before [Opposite ] Bonnevaux Ground, 2018
Bonnevaux
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17 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
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“As a community it will be an active working symbol of the underlying unity of humanity in a world of diverse faiths and cultures. Meditation, the universal human spiritual tradition, is both the way of silence and the way of deep community, communion with ourselves and others, with the terrestrial environment, with the universe and with God."
Bonnevaux
-Laurence Freeman
19 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
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A Place to Recover Hope
21 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
That is the conviction we must come to in our meditation, that the darkness cannot quench the light -John Main
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‘‘It is the white space between the words on a page that makes it readable… …Without periods of silence and non-action, our words and our deeds jumble up into meaningless spirals of stress. We need a web of silence spread around the world just as extensively as the web of technology.
Bonnevaux
-Laurence Freeman, The Law of White Spaces
23 I. Abbaye de Bonnevaux
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BARN: 340m
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OUT BUILDINGS: 620m
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NEW BUILDINGS: 375m
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Bonnevaux
STABLES: 1220m
ABBEY: 2180m
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CHAPEL
[ Above ] Proposed Buildings
II The Journey So Far
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What we have already accomplished & built at Bonnevaux.
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27 II. The Journey So Far
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29 II. The Journey So Far
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31 II. The Journey So Far
ABBEY: 2180m
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Abbey & Cloister
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33 II. The Journey So Far
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Abbey Exterior, Before
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Abbey Exterior, After
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Abbey Kitchen, Before
37 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Kitchen, After
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Abbey Kitchen Wall Texture
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Abbey Communal Dining, After
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Abbey Dining, Before
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Abbey Dining and Meeting Room After
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Abbey Staircase, Before
43 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Staircase, After
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Abbey Corridor, Before
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Abbey Corridor, After
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Abbey Iconic Chapel, Before
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Abbey Iconic Chapel, After
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Abbey Library, Before
49 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Library, After
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Abbey Library, Before Abbey Foyer
51 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Spiral Staircase
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Abbey Bedroom, Before
53 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Bedroom, After
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Abbey Bedroom, Before
55 II. The Journey So Far
Abbey Bedroom, After
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Abbey Bathroom, Before
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Abbey Bathroom, After
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Chapel, Before
59 II. The Journey So Far
CHAPEL
Chapel
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Chapel, Before
61 II. The Journey So Far
Chapel, After
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The Main Reception area, situated on the main site axis, is the first space arriving guests will be greeted: an area of calm, and warm welcome
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II. The Journey So Far
STABLES: 1220m
Stables
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Stables Exterior, Before
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[ Overleaf ] Stables Exterior, During Construction
Stables Exterior, During Construction
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67 II. The Journey So Far
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Stables Exterior, Before
69 II. The Journey So Far
Stables Exterior, Work-In-Progress
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Stables Reception, Before
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Stables Reception, Proposed
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73 II. The Journey So Far
[ Above ] Stables Exterior, Long Section
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[ Opposite ] Stables Exterior, Works-In-Progress
Stables Exterior, Work-In-Progress
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[ Above ] Stables, First Floor Plan, Proposed [ Below ] Stables, Ground Floor Plan, Proposed [ Opposite ] Stables Reception, Proposed
Stables, Proposed
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Stables, Proposed
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[ Above ] Stables, Ground Floor Interiors, Before [ Opposite - Above ] Stables, Dining Room Plan, Proposed [ Opposite - Below ] Stables, Library & Meeting Room Plan, Proposed
Stables Interior, Before
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Ground Floor Elevation
Stables, Dining Room Plan, Proposed Ground Floor Plan
Stables, Library & Meeting Room Plan, Proposed
Stables, Proposed
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Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress
81 II. The Journey So Far
Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress
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Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress
83 II. The Journey So Far
Stables Entrance, Work-In-Progress
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Stables Interior, Before
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First Floor Elevation
First Floor Plan – New Corridor
Stables Interior, Work-In-Progress
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First Floor Elevation
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First Floor Plan
Stables Interior, Typical Room
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Stables Interior, Work-In-Progress
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II. The Journey So Far
BARN: 340m
The Barn
Centre for Dialogue, Learning and Celebration
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The Barn Exterior, Before
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The Barn Exterior, After
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The Barn Interior, Before
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The Barn Interior, After
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The Barn Interior, Before
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The Barn Interior, Proposed
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HUNTING LODGE
The Hunting Lodge Upcoming, Existing
III. The Journey Ahead
RETREAT CENTRE
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TOTAL FLOOR AREA: 69m2
34m2
Ground Floor - Existing
First Floor - Existing
Ground Floor - Proposed
First Floor - Proposed
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35m2
TOTAL FLOOR AREA: 91m2
Ground Floor - Alternative with Extension
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[ Above ] Existing Interiors of the Hunting Lodge [ Opposite ] Existing & Proposed Plan of the Hunting Lodge
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Work to be completed will ensure there is sufficient accommodation for a workable business model, and that the environment and infrastructure will harmonise with nature and express the vision of Bonnevaux – from inner peace to outer peace.
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III The Journey Ahead i. Personal Retreat Cells & Meeting Rooms ii. The Gardens of Bonnevaux
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Storage
Bonnevaux
Meeting Space
WC
DDA WC
[ Above ] Plan of a Meeting Room
The spirit of the land heals the ravages of urban stress and helps to awaken one to life as a spiritual journey and to learn or to deepen one’s daily practice of meditation.1
Contemplative Village A Campus of Contemplation
III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room
Accessible by rail, car and plane, Bonnevaux is a haven of natural beauty and peace.
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900 years after the original Abbey was founded, in 2019 it became the international home of the WCCM’s ‘monastery without walls’.
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[ Opposite ] Interior of a Cell [ Above ] Plan of a Cell in the Contemplative Village
109 III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room
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[ Above & Below ] Exterior of a Cell [ Opposite ] Interior of a Cell
111 III. The Journey Ahead | i. Private Retreat Cells & Meeting Room
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The Gardens of Bonnevaux
113 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
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[ Above ] Bonnevaux – Before [ Opposite ] Proposed Master Plan
115 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
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A. ABBEY & CLOISTER
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B. CONTEMPLATIVE VILLAGE GARDENS
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[ Below ] Making History Visible The Church and Monastery of Bonnevaux in the 1824 Plan
“to serve as a place of peace & contemplation”
Bonnevaux
[ Opposite ] Proposed Plan of the Cloister
A. ABBEY & CLOISTER
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Low Curved Wall To Echo Of Footprint Of Former Abbey
A1.
A2.
A2.
A2.
A3.
A2. A1. Cloister Garden 1
The trees at the dining grove are symbolic of the pillars
A2. Cloister Garden 2
within the nave of the once existing abbey.
A3. Abbey Grove
A low curved wall nestled under the existing trees echoes the footprint of the Abbey & Cloister
former abbey, an informal seating place where the community can gather.
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[ Above ] The Proposed Abbey [ Below-Left ] The Abbey Before, 15 May 2006 [ Below-Right ] A Sacred Site
121 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
Eating at the place where the Bonnevaux abbey once stood, where the monks of old would have taken their daily alms whilst glimpsing the chapel and cloister, the last palimpsest of this history.
Abbey & Cloister
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B. CONTEMPLATIVE VILLAGE GARDENS
123 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
B16
B11
B12 B1
B10 B13
B2
B3
B15 B4 B14
B6
B15
B5
B6
B8
B7
B9
B6. Garden 6
B12. Sloping Lawn Amphitheatre
B1. Garden 1
B7. Garden 7
B13. Ruin Planters
B2. Garden 2
B8. Garden 8
B3. Garden 3
B9. Garden 9
B14. Lavender & Rosemary Central Pathway
B4. Garden 4
B10. Garden 10
B5. Garden 5
B11. Village Green
B15. Entrance Courtyards B16. Kitchen Garden
Contemplative Village Garden
[ Above ] The Proposed Plan – Village Gardens
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B5 B4
Bonnevaux
B2
B2. Garden 2 B4. Garden 4 B5. Garden 5
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B15. B1.
B8.
B1. Garden 1
B8. Garden 8
B15. Entrance Courtyards
Contemplative Village Garden
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B12.
B12. Sloping Lawn Amphitheatre
127 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
B13. B3.
B3. Garden 3
B13. Ruin Planters
Contemplative Village Garden
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B6.
B6. Garden 6
129 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
Contemplative Village Garden
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131 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
Contemplative Village Garden
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133 III. The Journey Ahead | ii. Gardens
Contemplative Village Garden
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135 II. The Journey So Far
Bonnevaux | Poitiers . France
© 2021