Honorable MentionSubmitted by:
Cambridge Seven Associates
Peter Kuttner Faia, President
1050 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge MA 02138
P: 617-492-7000
email: pkuttner@c7a.comLocation of application: Perforated metal panels used on the exterior glass wall of the Boston Children's Musuem
The Boston Children's Museum expansion and renovation enhances the visitor experience for one of the country's premier children's museums, and creates a world-class destination in Boston's historic Fort Point Channel District. Cambridge Seven Associates of Cambridge, Massachusetts designed the project to transform the existing 19th century brick structure into a vibrant and inviting identity fully embracing its waterfront. Filled with natural light and vistas, it enlivens its entire site with an animated orchestration of indoor and outdoor activities.
New Front Door
Expressing a dynamic image and new front door for the Museum, the 23,000 square foot metal and glass enclosed addition is conceived as a straightforward, geometric armature connected to the existing building on two levels via bridges running along the length of a spine. Openness and transparency reveal the energy and excitement of programs previously hidden behind the heavy brick façade, and allow for a sense of wonder and discovery.Kid's Warehouse
Augmenting the 150,000 square foot old industrial warehouse, the expansion expresses a modern version of a "kid's warehouse," with engaging threshold experiences and a dynamic flow of interior and exterior connections. The project includes 75,000 square feet of renovations to upgrade exhibitions and infrastructure systems as a healthy and energy efficient environment. The result blends transparent glass and opaque brick; contemporary expression and historic origin, outside and inside; playfulness and sophistication.
Opportunities for Learning
The project supports the Museum's vision of creating compelling and varied opportunities for episodic and participatory learning. Through an integration of architecture, landscape and exhibitions, the new Museum reinforces the concept of the "whole child" through the five themes of Healthy Kids, Curious Kids, Creative Kids, Global Kids and Green Kids . A completely new circulation system of bridges outside the existing building improves the horizontal and vertical flow to directly impact the visitor experience, now concentrated in the lower three floors of the Museum.Green Design
The project achieved LEED Gold certification, as the first green Museum in Boston, and incorporates many environmentally friendly features as an integral part of the building design as a "living exhibit." Sustainable design elements include a stormwater reclamation system and living green roof that reduces pollution and the urban heat island effect, water conservation, and state-of-the-art energy efficient mechanical systems.Perforated Panels
An important vision for the project was to open views from the addition towards the waterfront, increasing environmental awareness, while also providing natural light in new activity spaces. Energy analysis suggested that exterior screening was needed to address heat gain, and perforated metal panels provided the perfect solution to opening vistas while reducing solar gain. The glass behind each metal panel has been tinted either green or level, so at night the perforations glow with color. From within the museum, the colored glass and perforations create a seemingly random syncopation through the windows. In the afternoon the perforations playfully create slowly moving colored polka dots on the floor and furniture in the lobby and atrium.
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