Just 50 feet across and 30 feet high, the MIT Chapel is a windowless brick cylinder on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge, beside Kresge Auditorium and the Kresge Oval. Designed by Eero Saarinen and dedicated in 1955 (completed in 1956), this small building is often noted as a successful example of mid-century modern architecture in the United States. From the outside you take in a simple, windowless brick cylinder set inside a very shallow concrete moat, 50 feet (15 m) in diameter and 30 feet (9.1 m) high, topped by an aluminum spire.
The brick is carried on a series of low arches; Saarinen chose bricks that were rough and imperfect to create a richly textured surface. He also designed the surrounding landscaping, setting the chapel in two groves of London plane trees with a long wall to the east. That wall and those trees provide a uniform background and help isolate the site from the noise and bustle of adjacent buildings.
Step closer and sense the intimacy suggested by the windowless interior walls. Saarinen chose rough, imperfect bricks on purpose, and two groves of London plane trees with a long wall to the east keep the bustle of the neighboring buildings away.