Tree House Residence Hall Tower @ MassArt | 578 Huntington Avenue | Fenway

Re: Mass Art Dormitory

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Putting this here so people don't need to go looking.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

Can't say I love it, but it is always nice to see someone get away with something different in this city. I always wonder how it was pulled off, but don't really care...

Agreed, and would like to see the trend, if there is one, continue.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

The architect did confirm with us (that went on the trip) that the panels will turn into a more goldish color as you get closer to the top. So, that gradient shown on the facade is correct.
 
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Taking a cue from the Batterymarch building, eh?
 
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^ Indeed.

This is a much more imaginative use of these materials than the Shapiro Cardiovascular Center at BWH. Here, the pattern enhances the building's verticality, where at Shapiro, it tries to break up the building mass (like camouflage) but only succeeds in making the building seem fatter.
 
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^I quite like the Shapiro Center.
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Re: Mass Art Dormitory

Putting this here so people don't need to go looking.

In that rendering it looks like there's more glass on that one side...and that appears to be the side that is still mainly under construction. If they keep that, I think it may be a bit of a saving grace for the building. I do appreciate their willingness to try something different though.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

In that rendering it looks like there's more glass on that one side...and that appears to be the side that is still mainly under construction. If they keep that, I think it may be a bit of a saving grace for the building. I do appreciate their willingness to try something different though.

Yeah, that part with a lot of glazing is where they put the construction elevator. By looks of the glazing that they do have in place on that corner, it will be consistent with the rendering. FYI - Those areas (with more glazing) are directly across from the elevator lobby and are group study rooms/common areas.

There was a rendering though at one point that had solid-glass curtain wall boxes on the edge of the building. Those were hastily axed. I'm just disappointed that they didn't learn from the success of the Artist's Residence's double-height common areas. It would have been challenging on the extremely narrow footprint.

When we were in there, I noticed that everything in this building is the absolute minimum dimension possibly compliant with code.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

When we were in there, I noticed that everything in this building is the absolute minimum dimension possibly compliant with code.

Are we talking about Warren Towers (BU) sized dorm rooms? That would be awful, but at this point I'm also a little bit older and couldn't give 2 craps about the plight of a college student...

I walked by this the other day (and all around Longwood). The whole area is getting really dense, and there are a lot of pretty new buildings around with nice facades. It reminds me so much of Kendall really, except hospitals instead of biotech. They are both chock-full of midrise density, with many experimental designs that can't be found in the rest of our fair metropolis. However, I also think both areas would look much better with a 400' tower to serve as a beacon and make these areas really "pop". (not to mention I get lost in both, and having a taller tower to gravitate towards is a good way to orient yourself)
 
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dshoost said the rooms (which are DOUBLES) were the same size as the SINGLES in IV. They were smaller than my double in Baker Hall at Wentworth and I thought it couldn't get smaller.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

The earlier renderings gave the impression that this facade, like a Klimt painting which supposedly served as its inspiration, would evoke a shimmering gold and jeweled curtain. What I see so far are neat rows of Crayola crayons.
 
Re: Mass Art Dormitory

The earlier renderings gave the impression that this facade, like a Klimt painting which supposedly served as its inspiration, would evoke a shimmering gold and jeweled curtain. What I see so far are neat rows of Crayola crayons.

Like Klimt, I think it's a matter of distance. I think it's looking fairly faithful to the rendering thus far.
 
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There does appear to be not as much variation in the colors as the rendering. It seems to be this very harsh shade of brown and tan climbing higher and higher, but the rendering shows that it should have been gone completely by level 6.
 
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well, lets see when we can get a clear pix from a distance a few months from now!
 
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Boston Courant newspaper points out that the tower was exempt from city planning process because it's a state school on state land. That's fortunate, isn't it?

Of course, not everyone agrees.

"I heard nothing" about meetings the school held as a public service to Fenway residents. He wanted to comment. "Boy, that is an ugly building. It looks like a cheap motel."

Comment duly notes Ed. Now go back in your hole.
 
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John I take it you haven't seen this building in person yet? It's rather garish and not anywhere near as dynamic as represented in the rendering. The cladding was chosen to be different from anything else in the city and unfortunately the execution has left much to be desired.
 

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