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Monday, 12 June 2006 | Levent OZLER
BCA Announces Finalists for Environmental Design Competition
Exhibition of Entries to be Held June 20th through June 25th
The Boston Center of the Arts (BCA) is pleased to announce the five finalists submissions for "inside::out - Weaving Arts into the Urban Fabric," a national open design competition. The winning design will transform the Tremont Street plaza and other public spaces surrounding the BCA. The BCA occupies an entire city block from Clarendon Street to Berkeley Street in Boston's historic South End. The announcement of the five finalists brings the BCA one step closer to its goal of developing a design for the surrounding public spaces that connects arts to community. "The BCA will create a distinctive public space that provides a welcoming gathering place, while inviting the public "in" to explore what this hip and historic arts complex has to offer," said President and CEO Libbie Shufro. With over 200,000 visitors annually, the BCA offers 190,000 square feet of arts space, including 20,000 square feet designated for affordable studio and office space for artists and arts organizations.
The following individuals and/or team design submissions were selected as finalists.
- Stephen Stimson Associates, Landscape Architects, Inc. of Falmouth, MA specializes in landscape planning, design and construction. Team members include Stephen Stimson, President; Ekachai Pattamasattayasonthi, Landscape Designer; Masha Hranjec-Johnson, Landscape Designer; and Tom Lee, Landscape Architect.
- patterhn design of Saint Louis, Missouri began as a collaboration between Eric Hoffman and Tony Patterson while both were pursuing post-professional graduate education at Washington University's Graduate School of Architecture.
- Rachel Broek grew up in Des Moines, Iowa and received her undergraduate degree at the University of Iowa. She is currently a student at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, RI.
- Daniel Cho studied Civil Engineering in Korea at Kyunghee University for two years and served in the 2nd Infantry Division, United States Army. He is currently a student at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, RI.
- Aaron Dorf, Kirsten Hively, Rebecca Hutchinson, and Adam Modesitt. The PanOptical Camouflage team is composed of four Master of Architecture students in their third year at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. Aaron Dorf received his B.S. in Architecture from the University of Virginia. Kirsten Hively received her B.A. in Music from Occidental College. Becky Hutchinson received her B.A. in Architectural Studies from Brown University. Adam Modesitt received his B.A. in Physics from Wesleyan University.
"We were all very pleased by the range, creativity and quality of the submissions," states David J. Hacin, AIA, BCA Board President and inside::out committee co-chair. "Whether student or professional, the participants demonstrated great vision for the role of the arts in civic life and insight into the needs of the neighborhood and the BCA." The competition advisor, Martin Zogran, an assistant professor of Urban Design at Harvard's Graduate School of Design noted, "The BCA has a real opportunity to provide enduring value to Boston's citizens, as thoughtful design of public spaces are among the greatest assets of city living." The winning design will be announced in the fall of 2006 and will be awarded $5,000.
The finalists were selected by a Design Jury whose members include: Gary Hilderbrand of Reed Hilderbrand Architects, Boston; Ann McQueen, Program Officer of The Boston Foundation and Co-Chair of the Cultural Task Force; Toshiko Mori, Chair of the Architecture Department at the Harvard Graduate School of Design; Peter Reed, Senior Deputy Director for Curatorial Affairs at MOMA, New York; Kairos Shen, the Director of Planning at the Boston Redevelopment Authority; and Edmund Barry Gaither, Director Curator of the Museum of the National Center for Afro-American Artists and Special Consultant to the MFA, Boston.
Over one hundred students, artists, landscape architects, and architects registered for the competition and sixty-six designs were submitted. Professional designers submitted thirty-four of the sixty-six proposals, with thirty-two were by non-professional entrants. The Boston area was the most heavily represented region with twenty-three submissions, followed by New York with nine. Other proposals came from across the country: Rhode Island, Oregon, Vermont, Ohio, Missouri, Arizona, Illinois, Arkansas, California, and Maryland. Many were from design schools, including Rhode Island School of Design, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Columbia University, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Ohio State, and the University of Southern California.
"inside::out" is the latest development in the ongoing physical transformation of the BCA. In 2004, a collaboration between the BCA, Huntington Theatre, the City of Boston, and the Druker Company resulted in the opening of the Calderwood Pavilion, housing two state-of-the-art theatres. The new theatres, coupled with the Atelier 505 condominium and retail complex have created a new gateway to the South End and enlivened the already bustling area with new restaurants, shops, and services. As a result of the new theaters, the BCA's attendance almost doubled last year.
Public Event Schedule
The BCA is providing three unique opportunities for the public to view all sixty-six submissions, including the five finalists and five honorable mentions. Beginning June 6th the submitted design proposals will be posted in a Virtual Exhibition on the inside::out website. To view the virtual exhibition visit http://insideout.bcaonline.org.
Additionally, from Tuesday, June 20th through Sunday, June 25th the BCA will present an Exhibition of Entries under the great dome of the Cyclorama featuring all sixty-six proposals. The exhibit will include visual representations of the proposed designs accompanied by text explaining the design content. Staff members from the BCA as well as volunteers will be available to answer questions. Hours of the exhibition are Tuesday through Saturday 9 AM to 8 PM, and Sunday 12 noon to 3 PM. The exhibit is free and open to the public. For more information please call 617-426-ARTS and
On Saturday, June 24th from 9:30 am - 1:00 pm the BCA will host an open to the public Community Review Event, which will include presentations by each of the finalists, as well as a facilitated question and answer session. The Community Review Event, which will be facilitated by Steve Cecil of The Cecil Group, will be an opportunity to generate discussions with the community about the finalists' design ideas and how they address the program goals that arose from the public Visioning Event in January.
Celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2006, the BCA is an urban cultural village, incubating and showcasing the performing and visual arts and artists of our times. The BCA provides a creative "home" for artists, a welcoming destination for audiences, and an arts connection for youth and community across Greater Boston. The BCA complex includes 50 working artist studios, 6 live/work spaces, The Mills gallery, four theatres including two located in the new Calderwood Pavilion opened in 2004 in collaboration with Huntington Theatre, educational and rehearsal spaces, and the historic Cyclorama. It is also proud to be the home for the Boston Ballet, the Community Music Center of Boston, and almost a dozen other non-profit arts organizations. For more information please visit http://www.bcaonline.org
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