Center for Computing & Data Sciences Wins Global Award for Interior Design

Judges praise building for “classrooms and collaboration spaces illuminated with an abundance of light through the triple-glazed curtain wall”

Photo: Interior of Boston University’s Center for Computing & Data Sciences. Large walkway staircase i shown. Next to the staircase, a multifunctional space for studying, hanging out, or hosting events is shown with modular black, wood, and red seating areas. Two the far left are large windows letting in lots of natural light. A vast wooden ceiling tops off the area.

Photo by Janice Checchio

Center for Computing & Data Sciences

Center for Computing & Data Sciences Wins Global Award for Interior Design

Judges praise building for “classrooms and collaboration spaces illuminated with an abundance of light through the triple-glazed curtain wall”

December 4, 2023
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The dramatic exterior of Boston University’s Center for Computing & Data Sciences, along with its fossil-fuel-free design, have received widespread acclaim (although the 19-story building has also had plenty of criticism of its unique stack-of-books look). But overlooked in all the attention since it opened in December 2022 has been the building’s stunning interior—until now.

The respected World Architecture Festival, held last week in Singapore, has honored the inside of the building, designed by KPMB Architects of Toronto, as its Education category winner (Inside) in its annual architecture competition. (See the link here.)

See a collection of photos below of the building that houses Computing & Data Sciences, the mathematics and statistics and computer science departments, and the Rafik B. Hariri Institute for Computing and Computational Science & Engineering. Here are a few of the comments from judges:

  • It transforms the skyline, meets laudable sustainability goals, and prioritizes human-centered design, maximizing collaboration and interconnectivity.
  • The Center is conceptualized to function as ascending academic neighborhoods with bottom floors devoted to math and statistics, middle floors for computer science, and the top floors for interdisciplinary work and public space.
  • A central atrium unites faculty and students in a collaborative spirit and an interconnected staircase emerges from the area weaving upwards eight floors to connect various disciplines, nurture cross-pollination of ideas, and spark serendipitous encounters.
  • Open interior spaces take advantage of the Center’s unique position in the heart of Boston, with unrivaled views afforded from three sides of the building. Classrooms and collaboration spaces are illuminated with an abundance of light through the triple-glazed curtain wall.
  • Each floor is characterized by bright colours, including red, green, purple, turquoise, and blue, that are employed in a monochromatic fashion for furniture and surfaces to aid in wayfinding.
  • The stacked campus culminates in an event space and pavilion at the top level that fosters collaborative engagement and offers unrivaled views of the city. The design sets an ambitious new sustainability precedent for future academic buildings in Boston and beyond.
Photo: Interior of Boston University's Center for Computing & Data Sciences. Photo shows students getting food and drinks at the coffee shop inside the building. Walls feature wooden slat accents and carefully placed lights highlight the natural features.

Photo by Tom Arban

Photo: Interior of Boston University's Center for Computing & Data Sciences. Interior shows high ceilings featuring wood and black accents. Two large opens spaces with bright red modular furniture is shown as student sit, mingle, study, and walk in and around the space.

Photo by Tom Arban

Photo: Overhead shot of students walking and gathering in and around a large set of black and wood butterfly stairs.

Photo by Danny Dolan (COM’26)

(left) Photo by Tom Arban. (right) Photo by Danny Dolan (COM’26)

Photo: Overhead shot of students walking and gathering in and around a large set of black and wood butterfly stairs.
Photo by Jackie Ricciardi
Photo: A group of students are shown sitting at white tables in an open space classroom. Behind them, large floor to ceiling windows let in tons of natural light.

Photo by Janice Checchio

Photo: Members of the BU community study in the 5th floor lounge inside of the BU Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS) Building. People mingle and sit in a large open, brightly lit space. They sit in white bar chairs at various large white tabletops and mingle, study, and nibble on snacks.

Photo by Danny Dolan (COM ’26)

(left) Photo by Janice Checchio (right) Photo by Danny Dolan (COM ’26)

Photo: A large empty room in the Boston University Center for Computing & Data Sciences. Large space features rows of white tables and chairs. In the back area red and black modular furniture are set up near the windows. Rooms is lit with natural light by large floor to ceiling windows.

Photo by Tom Arban

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There are 4 comments on Center for Computing & Data Sciences Wins Global Award for Interior Design

  1. I’m proud of BU, and they’re really lucky these sort of awards aren’t based on practicality. For a building with virtually no outlets and little to no real open-space apart from classrooms, this building comes comes monumentally short of actually changing students’ experiences. While it is beautiful and sustainable, I hope at some point it becomes useful too.

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    1. It’s also worth noting that the building is both majestic and awe-inspiring, but I (and I’m sure many students) feel that $305 million could be better spent improving housing or extending financial aid and scholarships. There is no reason why black mold and cockroaches should exist in housing on the same campus as a quarter of a billion dollar megalith

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  2. The building looks nice, but:

    – The intense sunshine through the windows at various points in the day makes it impossible to work. The provided shades are inadequate (they don’t block the intense sun) and they don’t provide full coverage.

    – There is no privacy — anywhere — for someone who needs to take a difficult phone call with a doctor/spouse/teacher/child/whatever. If you’re lucky enough to have an office you get to share it with your office mate(s), and if you’re a student in the common areas you’re out of luck…

    – …and in either case, because of the fishbowl like design of the offices you are constantly on display, and if you attempt to add some sort of privacy screen to your office you will be made to take it down (by people who probably have an office with actual walls and a real door).

    – There are minimal restroom facilities on each floor, and if a floor is fully populated you may find yourself needing to wait.

    – If you do manage to find yourself an available restroom, when you’re done you’ll probably find the hand dryers are broken and there are no towels.

    – If you bike/run/whatever to work and want a shower when you get there, there are showers…as long as you’re willing to leave all your clothes sitting on the floor at risk of getting wet.

    The building was designed to be pretty, but it was not designed to be used by people. I think that means its a failure in its primary purpose, and hardly worthy of an award.

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