Boston Properties Office Tower | 888 Boylston Street | Back Bay

We were in a slump for a little while (one marina, waterside place, the kensington) but lately pretty much everything going up is amazing. Its only going to get even better from here too with the quality of what is coming next.
 
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I have to lament the "mirrored-blue-glassification" of all the new towers going up in Boston (& Manhattan for that matter, ie: EVERY new tower at Ground Zero). The Filenes tower, 888 Boylston, the Seaport towers, the Christian Science towers, the W, etc all appear to sheathed in the same slightly mirrored blue tinted glass. Did we forget how to build tall with other materials (besides cement rain screen panels and crappy white precast panels)?
 
Did we forget how to build tall with other materials (besides cement rain screen panels and crappy white precast panels)?
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Yes. It's literally the lowest common denominator facade that is virtually immune to criticism because it almost always looks acceptable compared to alternatives.

Many on this board have actually commented in favor of boring glass facades for this reason; favoring boring but not awful for bold but potentially terrible.
 
meddlepal said:
Yes. It's literally the lowest common denominator facade that is virtually immune to criticism because it almost always looks acceptable compared to alternatives.

Many on this board have actually commented in favor of boring glass facades for this reason; favoring boring but not awful for bold but potentially terrible.
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That's pretty well put, I'm not sure potentially terrible is an option I want on the table
 
If done with quality materials, a glass curtain wall makes for a beautiful building. From the Lever House to the present, buildings sheathed in glass have never gone out of style, something that cannot be said for many other trends in high rise architecture over the years. I'm a huge fan of glass (art deco a close second); the Hancock Building is one of my favorite buildings of all time and nothing says corporate success like a walk down Park Ave in NYC where building after building is sheathed in glass.
 
meddlepal said:
Many on this board have actually commented in favor of boring glass facades for this reason; favoring boring but not awful for bold but potentially terrible.
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Exactly. It's not so much that I love featureless glass above all else, it's that it's much more certain to look decent (especially given the dull precast schlock we've been handed the last couple of years).

I'm much more in favor of glass with some degree of "extra". 888 Boylston's glass accomplishes that look well with its metal accents and looks great.
 
Speaking of glass with "extra"... here's some progress





Glass is also going in over the shopping center reno.




Poking up from the Pru courtyard:
 
I keep wondering how awesome the Pru would look if they cleaned and backlit those seafoam green panels.
 
With glass already going in on the renewed Boylston entrance, is Boston Properties planning to reopen in time for the holiday shopping season?
 
It can look like Bill's Taco Barn for all I care--it's gonna have an Eataly!!!
(and it actually looks much nicer than a Bill's Taco Barn, but that's just a bonus...)
 
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