van der Laan, Hans (1904-1991)

Dutch architect of monasteries. He studied architecture in the 1920s in Delft before entering the Benedictine order, where he was ordained as a priest 1934. His earliest work was a guest wing added to the abbey in Oosterhaut 1938; his most significant work is the monastery in Vaals 1956-1982. Here the strength and clarity of mass and void evoke an elementary classicism.