A major expansion to the Boston Center for the Arts, Atelier 505 is a mixed-use development that brings together theater and arts facilities, commercial and retail spaces, and over 100 residences. The design and siting of the new building treat the entire city block as a single unit, subdivided into many buildings, with the Center’s Cyclorama dome as its architectural focal point. 

The new building mass steps back from the face of the Cyclorama along Tremont Street, exposing its copper dome to the street. This step-back also creates a triangular public plaza, animated by landscaping, paving patterns, café seating, shopfronts, display windows, lobby entrances, and activity that spills from the surrounding buildings. A mix of access points serving retail housing, and public functions reinforce the plaza’s energy. Rather than forming a single monolithic structure, the building’s multi-volume design echoes the variegated built environment of Boston’s South End. 

“The pavilion, plaza building, and townhouse-scale elements [of Atelier 505] constitute a particularly successful, well-integrated solution to this difficult, tight site…The site plan is particularly intelligent, the masonry fabric is innovatively used, and the entire project reflects a clear understanding of the urban condition and fine execution of a very good program.” - Jury Comments, Housing Citation, 2006 BSA Design Awards