d e s i g n s o f

MICHAEL W COSTER
 A bit about...
In June 2005, I was a teacher in Michigan - a music teacher and a computer teacher - son of an artist, a warbling singer, a

wannabe monk, an accomplished sculler, a seeking soul and an unlikely designer...until a nun asked for a small favor. As I

obliged, the favor grew.

One year later I boarded a Boeing to Phoenix, where the bishop-to-be introduced me to the bishop-that-was as the

professional chapel designer . It was strange to hear and the memory still makes me smile. The works in this portfolio
chronologically precede and supervene that moment presenting some of the fifteen chapels I was drafted willingly to help create.
 THE SILK PURSE
My principal, Sr Mary Samuel, asked me if I would paint an arch on the wall
of the old school gymnasium which was going to become the new school
chapel. I sketched a design for the arch alone, then began adding more
'details' (many more), resulting in the chapel seen here. To execute the
design, I led volunteers of parents, nuns and teachers - instructing them in
decorative painting and construction techniques, organizing work sessions
and finishing much of the painting, creating and installating myself. With
only $12,000, we were able to create this chapel out of an old gym. It was
my first experience designing a room.
YOU GET A CHAPEL, AND
YOU GET A CHAPEL!!

The Sisters of Mary asked me for input

and help with the design of their new
Motherhouse chapel. Beginning with the
architects' plans, I expanded the tile
design, picked colors and materials, built
side altars and created mosaics, added
stenciling, experimented with faux finishes,
acquired sanctuary furniture and statuary,
redistributed visual points of interest, and
worked with the architects refining many
design details. The chapel was featured
in CAM (Construction Associates of
Michigan) Magazine in October 2006.

This community of Sisters has since been

featured on Oprah - twice, with views of
the chapel inlcluded is the segments.
Additionally, the sisters' latest CD of
Christmas music was ranked number one
on Billboard's classical music chart . for
weeks with several articles and reviews
commenting on how the chapel's design
contributed to the unique acoustics heard
in the Sisters' recordng.
 BACK TO SCHOOL
After seeing some of my previous work, the
Catholic chaplain of Central Michigan University
asked for my help reclaiming some lost space in
the school chapel in a style that compliments
the room's prominent wood architecture.

The wood 'grid' on the back wall hides a

doorway and large vent. and breaks up the
expansive horizontal space to give a greater
feeling of height. The new overhead lighting
creates a more intimate, prayerful mood in the
nave as well as highlights the beautiful ceiling
and draws attention heavenward. A local
woodworker built the altar, ambo and baldichin
according to my designs and student volunteers
helped with the installation. A second phase of
renovation may include more color, an altar rail,
sedalia, and additional artwork.

Before
 DESERT OASIS
The Poor Clare nuns of Our Lady of Solitude monastery
asked me to help them create a chapel in the middle of the
Arizona desert, evoking the medieval stylings of 1212 AD, the
year in which their order began. While I worked with
architects and artisans as a general consultant on most of the
project, the nuns asked me to create the entire floor design
myself. As part of the encaustic-inspired layout, I worked
with an artist specializing in medieval art to create 7 floor
medallions depicting important scenes from the history of
the Poor Clare order and the Church placed appropriately
throughout the chapel according its role in the liturgy.
 BETWEEN THE
LINES
Mercy Chapel is part of the infirmary

MANAGE
wing of a convent primarily to be used
as a small prayer chapel for aging and
infirm sisters. Knowing their advanced

MENT
spirituality, I filled the small space with
an abundance of symbolism. The
floor medallion alone is rich with no

INSIDE
less than 16 symbols of forgiveness
and compassion, and the imagery,
icons and text of the altar offer a

OF
deeply profound treatise on Divine
mercy - appealilng to their years of
theological learning as well as with

WORKFL
their simple sense of devotion.

The statues, stained glass, prie dieu

and wall stations were surplus that

OWS
had been in storage for years; they
became the starting point for the
design. The floor tile was leftover
from other projects. I worked with a
water jet specialist to realize the floor
design which included developing a
technique to create gospel scenes in
the tile. Finally, I built and finished the
altar and niches, chose light fixtures
and used wood dyes to enhance the
details of the carved wood stations.