NELSON’s Boston office was awarded Gold in Interior Design Competition by the 8th Annual International Design Awards for the Google, Cambridge Campus Expansion, Massachusetts Project.

IDA honorary juries examined over 1000 entries submitted by architects and designers of interiors, fashion, products, and graphics from 52 countries throughout the world. After final decisions had been made, the jury rewarded the best professional and emerging designers for their achievements in terms of design, creativity, usability and innovation. Judging was a rigorous process, with winners receiving publication of their work in the International Design Awards Book of Designs. The coveted IDA Trophy will be awarded to all Designer of the Year title winners at the official biennial International Design Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles.

This annual competition recognizes, honors, and promotes legendary design visionaries and uncovers emerging talents in Architecture, Interior, Product, Graphic, and Fashion Design on global level.

The members of the jury included Alice Blackwood Editor, Design Quarterly, Kahi Lee – Host, HGTV’s “Design on a Dime”, Style Network’s “My Celebrity Home”, Melissa Sterry – Interdisciplinary Design Scientist, Founder, Societas,Josh Rubin – Editor-in-Chief, Founder, and Publisher, Cool Hunting, Martin Venzky – Stalling, Senior Advisor, CMU STeP, Jeffrey Nemeroff – Co-Founder, Creative Director, Entra Magazine, Jordan Landes-Brenman CEO, Haute House PR & Marketing, Raj Nandan – Managing Director, Indesign Group, William Menking – Founder, Editor-in-Chief, The Architects’ Newspaper, Nicole Lloyd – Senior Art Buyer, Deutsch, Inc., Rebecca Epstein Kong – Co-founder, Artware Editions, Aaron Kenedi – Editor-in-Chief, Print, Geraldine Grisey – Editor, Punky B Fashion Diary.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Google came to NELSON in 2010 looking to design 20,000 SF of office and kitchen/café space. This modest beginning rapidly grew into a 1200-person, multi- building ‘campus’ located in the MIT Kendall Square area of Cambridge, MA. Paramount to the project’s success was the connection of three buildings surrounding a parking garage with two purposefully built infill buildings forming the nucleus of Google’s campus. Google’s corporate design strategy includes creating spaces that reflect each location’s history and character. Visioning sessions held with ‘Googlers’ resulted in a master plan concept based on Boston’s iconic MBTA transportation system, the “T.” Each building is assigned a color coded ‘line’ and each floor a ‘stop.’ Inspired and guided by the stop’s surrounds, the goal was to create a Boston/Cambridge office. Highlights include a Red Line “Kendall Square” stop as the main entrance. Visitors arrive inside a Red Line subway car, setting up the overall campus experience. Other stops include a micro kitchen with real canoes referencing boating on the adjacent Charles River. At “Charles/MGH” Red Line floor, the luxury Liberty Hotel riffs off of the former infamous Charles Street Jail, mixing lavish appointments with real jail cell doors. A Back Bay Victorian row house library pays homage to the Green Line “Arlington Street” stop, but with a modern twist. The historic “Park Street” floor offers an inspired cafe with rooftop garden views interpreted as the Boston Public Gardens. And, at America’s first public beach – the Blue Line’s “Revere Beach” celebrates with a lighthouse and lounge. Nothing is too outrageous to picture, and one-size-fits-all workstations compliment an array of amenities fostering productive ‘alone’ time as well as collaboration. While innovation and creativity are crucial, Google’s metric focus insures that everything meets data-driven criteria. Google has global commitment to sustainability and spaces are LEED Gold or Platinum Certified.

Please join us in congratulating the Boston Team!