Harvard University Science Center Expansion
Cambridge, Mass.
Leers Weinzapfel Associates Architects

Leers Weinzapfel Associates freshens up an iconic but tough concrete building with light-filled additions of glass and steel

© Peter Aaron/Esto

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By Deborah Snoonian, P.E.

Josep Lluís Sert’s tenure as chair of Harvard’s Graduate School of Design in the 1950s and ’60s coincided with a period of growth and expansion for the entire school. His Harvard University Science Center, completed in 1970, extended the school north of Harvard Yard for the first time and has served as the de facto gateway to this area of the campus ever since. A few years ago, the Boston firm Leers Weinzapfel Associates was tapped to add more space to the existing 291,000-square-foot structure. The elegant, thoughtful additions, which peek out from behind the building when viewed facing the terraced south facade and main entry, pay homage to the form and scale of Sert’s original while updating its massing and materials.

A number of departments housed at the Science Center, including statistics, computer science, and the history of science, needed updating as well as more space for classrooms, labs, and administration. In addition, most of the history of science department’s prized collection of some 15,000 scientific instruments, dating from as early as 1450, was squirreled away in a dusty basement far from the public’s eye. Recognizing an opportunity to raise the profile of what is already one of Harvard’s most popular programs, the chair of the department asked the architects for exhibition space to display the collection.

Besides the additions, Leers Weinzapfel renovated an even larger portion of the interior of the building, including the replacement of leaky, single-glazed atria with up-to-date glazing systems. They also revamped the Science Center’s pleasant courtyard with casual seating along with seasonal flowers and plantings.

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Formal name of Project:
Harvard University Science Center Expansion

Location:
Cambridge, Mass.

Gross square footage:
Additions: 26,814 sq. ft.
Renovations: 38,729 sq. ft.
Existing Building: 291,000 sq. ft.

Owner:
Harvard University www.harvard.edu

Architect:
Leers Weinzapfel Associates Architects, Inc.
280 Summer Street
Boston, Massachusetts
617-423-5711 phone
617-482-7257 fax
lwa-architects.com