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Last February, the University announced that it had taken the first step in assembling the new archipelago of buildings that will become the Allston campus, Harvard’s gateway to the 21st century. The selection of German architects Berhnisch Architekten for the design of Allston’s first biolab should be commended for recognizing that designing the future requires not only conceptual vision, but also vision on the scale of the built world. Harvard shouldn’t plan our new Allston playground as an ossified artifact of architectural regurgitation. With the innovative Behnisch architects, our new campus...
It’s refreshing to have architecture back on the front burner at Harvard. The last building glut on campus ended in the early 70s. At that time, Cambridge was widely considered one of the most daring design centers in the U.S. Iconic buildings such as Sert’s Peabody Terrace and Le Corbusier’s Carpenter Center rose up in parallel with Harvard’s postwar intellectual boom. Harvard became an architectural rebel, dipping in to new experimental styles and unfamiliar designs in their sprawl across Cambridge...
Professor in Practice of Urban Design Alex Krieger points out that “it would be pretty silly to make large, state-of-the-art science buildings look like neo-Georgian houses. Being inspired by older architecture and setting is important. Attempting to reproduce an ‘old look,’ especially for quite new functions, usually produces rather banal results...
...sustainable building practices into the new buildings. Says Krieger, “Behnisch will add one additional dimension, which is environmental sustainability.” As the world begins to struggle with energy crises and environmental questions, it’s fitting that Harvard develop a model for thoughtful design...
...process can now go one of two ways: Either the planning committee can allow Behnisch the room to chart the future, or they can pull back in fear of disrupting the love affair. The latter option would yield only architectural boredom in Allston. It is crucial that the design process keep at the front of its mind the period when Cambridge was, in the words of ArchitectureBoston editor Elizabeth S. Padjen, “an architectural Camelot of high energy, idealism, and creativity...