Yesterday we had the privilege to host the Metropolis Think Tank series event at our Payette office bringing together a group of local experts to discuss how architects can inspire a city with so many uniform structures. Specifically, the open dialogue explored our Northeastern University’s Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex project, and how it is breaking the mold of banal architecture in the city of Boston.
Photo credit: Payette, Image by Rashad Baniabbasi
Beyond Homogeneity – Boston’s Solution
Banal architecture plagues modern cities everywhere. In Boston the conversation surrounds the timidity of its recent architecture — uniform structures and the same glass box that dominates the skyline — regardless of climate, culture, material resources and specific needs. The new Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex at Northeastern University breaks through this wave of homogenous architecture. We analyze the bold vision to rethink the university’s campus and the institution’s research agenda. How did this happen and why, in Boston, do we often see a lack of institutional courage to build something truly inspiring?
Panelists:
Michael R. Davis, FAIA, LEED AP, President, Bergmeyer Associates, Inc.
Wes Schwartz, AIA, Senior Associate, Payette
Rachel Slade, Editor of Boston Magazine
Kathy Spiegelman, Vice President & Chief of Campus Planning and Development, Northeastern University
Kevin Sullivan, FAIA, President / CEO, Payette
Moderated by:
Susan Szenasy, Publisher / Editor in chief, Metropolis Magazine
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center recently completed a new inpatient building in the heart of Boston’s Longwood Medical Area. A rich texture and palette of materials adorn the wall along the base of the building. Polished black granite forms the watercourse and seat walls, warm gray granite is used on the large wall panels, and an alternating texture of black granite, green glazed terracotta, and weathered steel is applied to the vertical recesses between the granite wall panels.
This design accentuates key elements in the landscape and introduces an intimate human scale and craftsmanship to the pedestrian realm.
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