There are few monastery complexes built in a unified style. Usually, monasteries were constructed gradually over the centuries, which gave them a certain eclecticism. However, Zosimova Pustyn is an exception. It was built at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and vividly demonstrates "pseudo-Russian trends" in domestic architecture.

The first stone church, consecrated in honor of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, appeared in Zosimova Pustyn in 1889. It was rebuilt from a stone chapel over the grave of the schemamonk Zosima and was only conditionally suitable for worship. Only in 1894 was it possible to begin construction of a new cathedral. On May 1, Archimandrite Pavel Glebov laid the first stone in its foundation. The cathedral was erected on the same site as the previous one, over the grave of Elder Zosima. The consecration of the cathedral took place in the summer of 1900. The main church was consecrated on July 8 in honor of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, the northern chapel on July 9 in the name of Archangel Raphael and other Heavenly Powers, and the southern one in the name of the Venerable Zosima, the Solovetsky Miracle Worker. During these days, Zosimova Pustyn was visited by Metropolitan Vladimir Bogoyavlensky of Moscow, the future Metropolitan of Kyiv and a holy martyr, who performed the consecration of the main altar of the cathedral. This event became a real celebration not only for the monastery. "The gathering of people was numerous," reported holy martyr Seraphim Chichagov. People came from Moscow, Alexandrov, Kirzhach, and Sergiev Posad. The weather was clear and warm, which contributed to the celebration.

During the Soviet era, the church housed a club for a military unit, which spared it from complete destruction but caused irreparable damage: wall paintings were destroyed and the mosaic floor was partially damaged. After the closure of Zosimova Pustyn in 1923, many of its shrines disappeared, including the 14th-century Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God. However, with the revival of the monastery, the Mother of God consoled the brethren with another Smolensk image. Soon, the relics of the Zosimov elders, Venerable Herman and Alexius, as well as the founder, Venerable Zosima, were found. They were kept in the cathedral until the closure of the pustyn and became a symbol of its revival. Now, Zosimova Pustyn houses the Smolensk image of the Most Holy Theotokos. Unlike the lost icon, the current "Zosimov Smolensk" is larger in size but is located in the same place as the previous image, in the cathedral on the right side. The icon is venerated as miraculous and, according to experts, was painted at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries.

In terms of ancient icons, the monastery is not rich, but it has something more important, the newly acquired relics of Venerable Herman and Alexius of Zosimova. The remains of Elder Herman rested in the monastery, in the Solovetsky chapel of the Smolensk church, while Venerable Alexius was buried far from his native pustyn. In 1928, he was buried in Kukuyevsky cemetery in Sergiev Posad, and in 1956, after the cemetery was closed, he was transferred to the Northern cemetery. In 1994, his relics were found here. Now the relics of Venerable Herman and Alexius are located in the Smolensk cathedral of Zosimova Pustyn, in a common reliquary.