Fenway Center (One Kenmore) | Turnpike Parcel 7, Beacon Street | Fenway

DBM said:
We are truly staring at the abyss of VEd precast panel Alucobond hell... and it's ravening for our architectural souls.
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And the best part of this is that those panels start to get water stains in no time at all, and the whole development will look like an absolute dog in over/under 10 years!
 
Materials science and engineering has reached the point where design is not limited by the materials available. That makes it all the more frustrating when buildings take the absolute cheapest (financially and creatively) route to construction.
 
With the insanely 'architecty' discussion that happens at the public BCDC meetings, I can't even begin to imagine what happens in their 'committee' meetings, let alone how we still end up with stuff like this.

I get the complex nature of the site and the pedestrian realm actually isn't too bad, but it's a shame that this is, has been, and continues to be the trend.
 
DBM said:
Agreed. That facade, in its astonishing lack of textural depth, looks like the set-up to a visual gag from a Zucker Brothers movie--some kind of "breaking the fourth wall" kind of scene wherein the characters are interacting with what is supposed to be a solid and authentic 3-dimensional building structure--but when one of them merely touches it with their finger, the whole cheap flimsy 2-d set collapses, reminding the audience that the movie is just a movie, being filmed on a Hollywood sound stage.

We are truly staring at the abyss of VEd precast panel Alucobond hell... and it's ravening for our architectural souls.
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Fortunately, that angle will be blocked pretty soon by the Children's Hospital residential building.
 
Excellent News.

“And we feel it’s transformational, reconnecting Back Bay to the Fenway where the highway has separated them for a very long time.”

Not to be a nitpicker, but is this statement actually correct? If Kenmore Square is considered part of the Back Bay, then I suppose this is true.
 
type001 said:
Excellent News.

“And we feel it’s transformational, reconnecting Back Bay to the Fenway where the highway has separated them for a very long time.”

Not to be a nitpicker, but is this statement actually correct? If Kenmore Square is considered part of the Back Bay, then I suppose this is true.
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When I was at BU the school brochures and other literature would state that the school was in Back Bay with Packards corner I presume as the border for crossing into Allston.
 
In 60 years, will we hate 2020s architecture more or less than we hate most Brutalist architecture now?
 
cden4 said:
The thing about Brutalist architecture, though, is that at least I could tell that architects were trying to say something, even if I don't totally agree with what they were saying. With buildings today, I feel like the message is "we give up."
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There were "we give up" buildings in the 60s, too. Every apartment building in the West End, for instance. Kenmore Square will hopefully see good monumental architecture at One Kenmore Square in the 2020s.
 
type001 said:
Excellent News.

“And we feel it’s transformational, reconnecting Back Bay to the Fenway where the highway has separated them for a very long time.”

Not to be a nitpicker, but is this statement actually correct? If Kenmore Square is considered part of the Back Bay, then I suppose this is true.
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They were never connected, the train tracks were there before they filled the back bay and fenway and i think even before most of the current southe end was built
 
Equilibria said:
Brutalism is meant to convey permanence. I'm guessing most of the disposable architecture we complain about now won't be here in 60 years.
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I think that is also a really good point: a lot of the examples of Brutalism are physically very permanent being basically concrete bunkers. Demo costs are significantly higher than that cheap 5 over 1s that will be torn down and replaced pretty easily.
 
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