2019 Best of Design Award for Unbuilt – Public: Adams Street Branch Library
Designer: NADAAA
Location: Boston
A single pitch monumentalizes the porous facade of the NADAAA-designed Adams Street Branch Library, while a breakdown of peaked roofs in the rear matches the scale of the residential neighborhood it occupies. The folded roof draws rainwater toward the rear, creating a watershed in a new pedestrian landscape. The use of multiple terra-cotta glazes allows the materials to respond to their immediate contexts and speaks to the history of New England’s Greek Revival buildings. By extracting a wedge out of the southern portion of the site, NADAAA drew light and air into the center of the building and created a birch tree garden. Quiet reading areas within the library lie tangent to a number of gardens.
Structural Engineer: Souza, True, & Partners
MEP/FP Engineer: Garcia, Galuska, DeSousa
Landscape Design: Ground
Envelope Consultant: GRLA
Lighting Design: Sladen Feinstein Integrated Lighting
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