Hall of Fame Nominees

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DZH22 said:
...the Custom House tower...just screams "BOSTON!"...
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Interesting. I udnerstand that since it singlehandedly WAS Boston's skyline for decades you'd have the association, but that kind of white-stone classicism has never said "Boston" to me. If it were red brick or dark Quincy granite I'd see the connection, but as built its materials and form make me think NYC or perhaps Minneapolis way more than Boston.

But this is just a tangent. It's still HOF worthy for sure.
 
I'd support a lot of the nominees above, including the Ames, and Kennedy's list. I also happen to think the Federal Reserve tower is worthy of recognition.

But I'm going with the nomination of the Design Research building in Cambridge. Its induction into a Hall of Fame would be especially timely.

The Design Research building (up until recently Crate & Barrel), though not especially large, is a historic gem. Architect Ben Thompson, former Dean of Harvard's School of Architecture, merits recognition as does his wife Jane -- BTW, Jane was a partner in the redesign of Faneuil Hall marketplace, also previously nominated.

Jane Thompson, who recently reworked the interior of the DR building, is wrapping up publication of a book on the firm's history, and a DR retrospective will open in NY this year (I think at the Cooper Hewitt Museum, NYC).

Disclosure: I don't work in the field and have no professional relationship to DR or the Thompsons. But I know many architects, including Jane Thompson, and would consider her a friend.
 
I nominate our three most Brutal beauties:
Harvard's Carpenter Center (not to be confused with the the new Carpenter'S Center)
The State Services Center
Boston City Hall (excluding City Hall Plaza)
 
Boston is blessed with Brutal beauties, not to be outdone are Holyoke Center and the BU Law Tower.
 
Is Holyoke Center really brutal? Maybe aesthetically, but it's far more receptive/interactive with its surroundings than the State Services Center or City Hall. Though I guess the Five Cents Savings Bank is as well.
 
So, I understand we can nominate more than one.

Design Research, Cambridge
Federal Reserve (tower), Boston
 
czsz said:
Is Holyoke Center really brutal? Maybe aesthetically, but it's far more receptive/interactive with its surroundings than the State Services Center or City Hall. Though I guess the Five Cents Savings Bank is as well.
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Poor planning is a reflection on the age not the style, which, as you've noted, can be urban and contextual if done correctly.
 
I second the Federal Reserve on top of the Custom House tower. It's so unique and helps define the financial district skyline from the south (not to mention it's Boston's 3rd tallest behind the Hancock and the Pru!)
 
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