UMassBRUT is a multidisciplinary campaign designed to reshape perceptions of the UMass Amherst and UMass Dartmouth Brutalist architecture in order to advocate for the conservation and renovation of these historic and internationally significant buildings.
Hotel Marcel: Historic, Sustainable and Modern
Bruce R. Becker, FAIA, LEED AP
Wednesday, April 26th, 4:00 – 5:10 PM
Integrative Learning Center, Room S140
University of Massachusetts Amherst
The Pirelli Tire Building, formerly Armstrong Rubber Company, in New Haven, CT, was designed by Marcel Breuer (1902–1981) and Robert F. Gatje (1927–2018) in 1967 and completed in 1970. The Brutalist building, famously visible from I-95, is now Hotel Marcel, a 165-room boutique hotel—the first Passive House-certified hotel in the U.S. and the first net-zero energy hotel. Bruce Becker will share his visionary and regenerative work behind the project as both its developer and architect. For AIA CEU's register here: https://www.wmaia.org/page/2/
2022 Docomomo Modernism in America Award of Excellence
Inventory/Survey Category
In the fall of 2022, UMassBRUT was honored with a Docomomo Modernism in America Award of Excellence. Six members of the UMassBRUT team traveled to New York City to accept the award. According to Docomomo:
The UMassBRUT campaign stood out in the Inventory/Survey category for its all-hands-on-deck approach to rallying large educational institutions around better stewardship of their modern resources. Following a two-day symposium, they have made great strides in educating and warming their community towards Brutalism.
UMassBRUT
UMass Dartmouth, Dartmouth, MA, October 22nd, 2021
UMass Amherst, Amherst, MA, October 23rd, 2022
