Project

Less is More

Selective demolition improves accessibility, sustainability, and pedestrian flow at Harvard Law School’s iconic building.

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Harvard Law School Pound Hall

Harvard Law School Pound Hall

Client: Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Finegold Alexander’s renovation of Pound Hall was a key part of a larger revitalization of Harvard Law School’s quad to create a campus heart. Originally design by Ben Thompson, Finegold Alexander’s design carefully and selectively demolished a third of the mid-century waffle slab building. The team then designed a new face and main entry for the building. This bold, fritted glass addition enabled the Law School to retain lecture hall spaces at the first two floors of the building, and to reprogram the upper level for departmental administrative space. It is a bold vision for the new quad designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh for the school.

(Photo credit: Neil Alexander)

Size
33,000 SF
Scope
New Façade + Renovation
Program
Multiple program spaces for the Law school, classrooms, meeting rooms, and faculty offices.
Sustainability
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Project EUI
Dusk view of Pound Hall with golden light emanating from a glass facade.
Concrete slab building with glass facade on a bright clear day.
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Detail view of Pound Hall's glass curtain wall, with autumn yellow trees in the foreground.
Two men in suites walking past the entrance of Harvard Law School's Pound Hall.
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Renovations at Ben Thompson's 1970's Pound Hall involved selective demolition of a sizeable portion of the original building to create a new central courtyard for the Harvard Law School campus.

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Conference room with wooden panels, a white waffle concrete slab ceiling, and windows to the right.
View of Pound Hall's fritted glass curtain wall.
Entrance of Pound Hall at dusk, illuminated from the inside with a waffle concrete slab overhang.
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The design team relished the challenge of working on Ben Thompson’s building without pressuring the architect’s design ideals. The contemporary curtain wall, which is glazed with fritted glass to save energy and reduce glare, closes the demolition line opening. This bold, yet respectful intervention helped the central courtyard to become the campus’ new focal point.
Harvard Law School Pound Hall
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In Progress
FA Energy
Adaptive Reuse
Preservation
Civic
Religious
Higher Ed
K-12
Development