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Monday, 11 December 2006 | Levent OZLER
BCA Announces Environmental Design Winner
The Boston Center of the Arts (BCA) is pleased to announce that Eric Hoffman and Tony Patterson of patterhn design of Saint Louis, Missouri are the winners of its national design competition "inside::out - Weaving Arts into the Urban Fabric." The BCA occupies an entire city block from Clarendon Street to Berkeley Street in Boston's historic South End. The winning design will transform the Tremont Street plaza and other public spaces surrounding the BCA into a welcoming public gathering place providing interactive experiences with the arts.
The BCA is also pleased to announce that the project team for the next phase of development will include: Richard Burck and Lisa Giersbach of Richard Burck Associates, noted landscape architects located in Somerville, Massachusetts; and Steven G. Cecil of The Cecil Group of Boston as the BCA's Client Representative.
Over one hundred artists, design students, landscape architects and architects registered for the competition, announced a year ago in December, 2005. The two-stage competition included an extensive community process with a visioning event, community input and a day-long review of the finalists' presentations. Sixty-six designs were submitted, with about one third from the Boston area and the rest from across the country. Five finalists were announced in June, 2006. The finalists were then invited to assemble a professional design team and selectively revise their proposal in response to client and community considerations. The design jury then reconvened to review the revised proposals and select a winner.
All of the proposals, and expanded information on the winning design, can be viewed online at http://insideout.bcaonline.org.
The Project Team
- patterhn design 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. This is their first major commission as patterhn design. Eric, currently a Visiting Assistant Professor at Washington University, collaborated on the Walker Art Center expansion with his previous office, Hammel, Green and Abrahamson, and the Pritzker Prize-winning office of Herzog & de Meuron. Mr. Hoffman's other related experience includes CalPoly Pomona's Performing Arts and Digital Media Center with HGA and the Saint Louis Art Museum expansion with HOK and David Chipperfield Architects. Tony worked with the acclaimed offices of Marlon Blackwell Architect in Fayetteville, Arkansas and MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He contributed on a number of public and private projects with each firm. Both partners have received numerous honors and awards.
- Richard Burck received his Master of Landscape Architecture in 1985 from Harvard University Graduate School of Design, and has received numerous awards including recognition from the American Institute of Architects and the Boston Society of Landscape Architects. His experience includes projects such as the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art and the Honan Allston Library, as well as work on the Tanglewood Master Plan. His firm has just completed design and construction on the new Boston Convention Center in South Boston, and is also currently working on planning and site design for parks at South Boston's D Street Open Space, and at the new Fan Pier development and Public Green.
- Steven G. Cecil has been involved in inside::out since its launch, facilitating both the Visioning Event in January, 2006 and the Community Review Event featuring the five finalists in June. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the American Society of Landscape Architects and is recognized for his work in facilitating community participation in design projects that effect historic, cultural and environmental settings. He will serve as the BCA's Client Representative throughout the design, permitting and construction of the project, and will also facilitate the continued public education and community participation process.
"We are thrilled to be moving forward with this talented design team to ensure the creative use of our public spaces to connect the arts to community," commented BCA President and CEO Libbie Shufro. "This environmental design initiative epitomizes the BCA's mission to create access to the arts and interaction with the artists of our times."
A central feature of the winning design, entitled Softscape, is the use of wood as the main ground surface for the BCA Plaza, giving it almost the feeling of a boardwalk. "The jury agreed that Eric and Tony's design will result in a distinctive public space that is also a welcoming gathering place," stated David J. Hacin, AIA, BCA Board President and project co-chair. "The wood platform is also like a stage that showcases the many arts at the BCA, and brings what's inside the BCA 'out', while inviting the public 'in' to explore everything the BCA has to offer."
The design references the historic pattern of the site by marking the alignment of Montgomery Street, which ran through what is now part of the BCA Plaza in front of Hamersley's Bistro. Proposals for modern rooftop elements will extend the site vertically and complement the historic buildings. The design will include environmentally responsive or "green" design components within the overall landscape strategy such as sustainably harvested wood, rainwater collection and groundwater replenishment.
"The design will now undergo a significant refinement process over the next several months including input from the community, the city and other stakeholders." explained Prataap Patrose, Deputy Director for Urban Design of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, BCA Board member and project co-chair.
The competition advisor, Martin Zogran, an assistant professor of Urban Design at Harvard's Graduate School of Design added, "The winning design was chosen out of the many creative ideas submitted in the ideas phase of the project. It has the potential to become a great public space, a gathering place for the city and a connector between the BCA and the communities it serves."
The winners 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.
"inside::out" is the latest development in the ongoing physical transformation of the BCA. In 2004, the BCA campus expanded to include the Calderwood Pavilion, housing two state of the art theaters, an historic collaboration between the BCA, Huntington Theatre, the City of Boston, and the Druker Company. The new theatres, along 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.
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, educational and rehearsal spaces, and the historic Cyclorama. It is also the home for the Boston Ballet, the Community Music Center of Boston, and almost a dozen other non-profit arts organizations. In all, 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. As a result of the new theaters, the BCA's attendance has almost doubled to over 200,000 visitors annually.
For more information please visit http://www.bcaonline.org.
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