The Plum Village Buddhist Monastery in southern Dordogne, France, has received construction approval for the first of the projects in their ongoing collaboration with Dutch architects MVRDV. Working on a non-profit basis using a collaborative and immersive approach, MVRDV is designing two masterplans for the Monastery’s Upper and Lower Hamlets, as well as architectural designs for a new Nunnery, a renovation of the existing book shop, and four communal guest houses. In line with the values of Plum Village, these designs prioritise renovation as well as circular and bio-based materials, while avoiding harm to the natural environment. The proposed additions, designed with Bordeaux-based co-architect MoonWalkLocal, will help thousands of annual visitors to Plum Village, including peace and climate activists, to gain insight into Engaged Buddhism with even greater serenity and ease.

View towards the new Nunnery. Image © MVRDV

Plum Village Monastery was founded in 1982 by Thích Nhất Hạnh, known as the “Father of Mindfulness” for his role in developing and introducing the now-ubiquitous practice. Today Plum Village is the largest Buddhist Monastery in Europe, with its home base in France comprising three distinct locations, including the Lower Hamlet, home to around half of Plum Village’s nuns, and the Upper Hamlet, which is home to Plum Village’s monks and serves as the location of the Dharma Cloud Temple, the root temple of the Plum Village tradition. Adherents of the Plum Village Tradition practice Engaged Buddhism, applying their ethics and insights to contemporary issues. As such, sustainability and respect for nature were fundamental to MVRDV’s designs, providing an architectural reaction to climate change.

Veranda House, one of four Guest Houses in the Upper Hamlet. Image © MVRDV

Each year, Plum Village hosts a variety of retreats, with people coming from around the world to experience mindful communal living. In some cases, as many as 800 people arrive. The popularity of these retreats, while a positive reflection of the resonance that the Plum Village Tradition has with people worldwide, has also been a growing logistical challenge. Every summer, many of the sisters sleep in tents, giving up their regular beds to accommodate guests. Shoes pile up outside building entrances, and delivery vehicles interrupt the silence. In short, the growth in demand for Plum Village’s teachings and practice has outstripped the capacity of the site.

Collaborative workshop for the masterplan of the Lower Hamlet. Image © MVRDV

Since 2023, MVRDV’s designers have been closely engaged with the monastic residents of Plum Village, staying in the monastery on multiple occasions to immerse themselves in Plum Village’s ideals, to analyse the challenges that the monastery faces, and to talk through potential solutions with the monks and nuns themselves in dialogue-based workshops.

“For this project we really had to un-learn what we learned as architects, engaging in the practice of deep listening and understanding the very unusual needs of our clients”, says Sanne van der Burgh, Associate Director at MVRDV and leader of the architect’s Climate Team, which has played a pivotal role in the design process. “The things we know a lot about are things they don’t need. Things we initially didn’t understand, they need. The lives they lead, their daily routines, are very different from the users we typically design for. They live in harmony with nature and work closely together in their community. Plum village works as an organism that adjusts to the seasons, the weather, and most importantly the people. In more ways than one, working with Plum Village has been an enlightening experience.”

Programme of the buildings in the Lower Hamlet masterplan. Image © MVRDV

Masterplans

While acknowledging the unique challenges that face the Upper and Lower Hamlets individually, both masterplans adopt the same broad approach. They both define a number of areas with distinct characters and functions, create a more welcoming, stress-free arrival sequence at each hamlet, and reorganise vehicle routes to create car-free villages. They use natural approaches to tackle persistent problems, for example by creating habitat for birds that can curb the high mosquito population. Both plans identify locations for solar panels. Among many other additions and renovations, the Lower Hamlet masterplan proposes the construction of a new nunnery and dining hall. The Upper Hamlet masterplan – which was recently approved by the municipal council of Thénac – will see the addition of new guest houses and its existing bookshop renovated and expanded.

View of the Nunnery from the west. Image © REDVERTEX

Nunnery

The largest new building proposed in either of the masterplans, the new nunnery will be a courtyard-style building on a sloping site. Designed to provide accommodation and community training facilities for 76 monastics and aspirants from 12 nationalities, it will include dormitories, a zendo, a library, communal areas, and classrooms. Generous verandas encircle the courtyard to create connection between all of the living areas, supporting the communal spirit of the nuns. To minimise the carbon emissions of its creation, the nunnery will be made using a prefabricated construction system of wood frames with straw insulation. The nunnery recently received construction approval from the municipal council of Loubès-Bernac.

The Garden Houses, two of the four Guest Houses planned for the Upper Hamlet. Image © REDVERTEX

Guest Houses

MVRDV are already designing four guest houses for the Upper Hamlet, with more included in the Lower Hamlet masterplan. These two-storey buildings use wood construction and a simple floorplan. Rooms are arranged in a u-shape around communal living spaces with room for Dharma sharing circles, with external staircases, balconies, and verandas for circulation. The four guest houses adopt different characters depending on their context: the Gate House, located on the entrance square, accommodates 16 people upstairs and a reception area, workspaces, and laundry room downstairs; a pair of Garden Houses frame the vegetable garden, housing 31 people each; and the Veranda House, in the more spacious and secluded Son Ha area of the site, also houses 31 people with a large veranda that extends into the landscape. In each location, the guest houses are finished in different materials, adapting to the character of their surroundings.

Proposed interior of the renovated Book Shop. Image © MVRDV

Book Shop

The existing book shop, which is housed in an old stone barn, will be renovated and expanded. Envisaged as a welcoming social heart of the Plum Village Upper Hamlet, where the barn’s thick stone walls previously obscured the building’s purpose, a covered terrace will provide space for sitting, reading, and socialising, while enlarged doorways invite people inside. The once-cramped and disorganised space will be fitted out with a simple, modular wooden shelving system to better display the monastery’s books, calligraphy, and other items.

The designs for Plum Village Buddhist Monastery were produced by MVRDV in collaboration with co-architect MoonWalkLocal and consultants OTEIS, VPEAS, and Emacoustic.

See more of the Plum Village designs here.