Design Process

Machado Silvetti's approach is characterized by a careful and deliberate approach to creating architecture that responds to the unique needs of each project. Our team of architects, designers, and planners works collaboratively with clients, stakeholders, and consultants to identify the key challenges and opportunities of a given site and program. Through research, analysis, and iterative design studies, we develop a clear and compelling concept that guides the project forward. And through effective communication and collaboration, we are able to ensure that the project remains on track and that the final result meets the needs and expectations of the client and the community.

“We put our design philosophy into practice with a comprehensive approach that uncovers the unique culture of the individual project, translates these characteristics into clear concepts, and develops and executes the design with the sustained commitment of all the people involved.”

- Jeffry Burchard

Stories:

Kennedy TSA Design Process

The Kennedy Center for Theatre and the Studio Arts is sited directly across the lawn from the recently completed Ruth and Elmer Wellin Museum, also designed by Machado Silvetti, as part of a collection of buildings around a reconstructed pond that will create a new arts quad at Hamilton and help develop connections between the two sides of campus. Porosity is a critical component of the design, with a goal of inducing movement through and around the new building to draw it fully into the campus fabric. The project siting and design also carefully considers pedestrian and vehicular access from existing campus roads and walks.

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Getty Villa Design

“Images of descent, excavation, multiplicity of ground planes, exploration and discovery began to mix and fuse with the project, and the sense that the Villa could actually be put in "quotation marks" as it were, became a prominent concept of the design. Our intervention became an infrastructural framework for framing the architecture of the Villa as part of the collection.”

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Designing for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing: Horace Mann School

The Horace Mann School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (HMS) is the oldest public day school for the deaf and hard of hearing in the United States. Machado Silvetti assisted the City of Boston with an initial study of three existing school buildings to assess their potential as a temporary (5-10 year) swing space for HMS. Through a rigorous evaluation and presentation, the study determined the Edwards School in Charlestown, MA would best serve the needs of HMS and BPS future flexibility.
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The Main Public Stair: Re-Imagining Gio Ponti as a Form of Preservation

The main public stair is the primary vertical circulation device (outside of elevators) for public use and behaves much like several stairs in the original Gio Ponti-designed Martin Building. It connects Duncan Hall on the first floor to the Sturm Grand Pavilion on the second floor and a portion of the Bartlit Learning and Engagement Center on the Lower Level. The design and materiality of the stair draw inspiration from Ponti and his approach to the original design of the Martin Building.
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