Boston – Bruner/Cott Architects announced it is celebrating 50 years in practice.
Bruner/Cott Architects was founded by Simeon Bruner and Leland Cott, who held a deep commitment to adaptive reuse and transformative design, and a belief that thoughtful design must positively impact the quality of life and experience of users. Today, the firm is led by Partner Principals Jason Forney; Dana Kelly; and Jason Jewhurst, FAIA, LEED AP. Based in Boston, the firm serves cultural, educational, and commercial clients nationwide.
Recognitions Bruner/Cott has received over the years include the AIA National Honor Award for Design for the transformation of a 19th-century industrial complex in North Adams, Mass. into MASS MoCA and an AIA COTE Top 10 Award for the Kern Center at Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass., the largest educational Living Building Challenge recipient in the world upon its 2016 completion.
R.W. Kern Center at Hampshire College / Photo by Robert Benson Photography
Bruner/Cott was the first architectural firm in the U.S. to convert a major mill structure into housing with the transformation of Boston’s Chickering Piano Factory, and the firm has been involved in the renaissance of multiple modernist buildings in the Boston metro area.
Bruner/Cott is a committed supporter of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the firm received the JUST Social Justice Label in 2019 from the International Living Future Institute. It is also a participant in Public Architecture’s 1+ initiative, a national partnership program with the AIA that challenges architects to dedicate 1% of their billable time toward pro bono design work for nonprofit clients and communities in need. “As a 1+ firm, we are dedicated to supporting mission-driven and nonprofit organizations by designing spaces that will enrich the communities they serve,” said Jewhurst.
“Throughout our history, our firm has been dedicated to enhancing quality of life, economic vigor, and sense of community through thoughtful and sustainable design,” said Kelly. “We work in partnership with our clients, believing that the most effective design solutions come from a creative interpretation of place, culture, program, and responsibility. To us, architecture isn’t an imposed style, it’s a site-specific art. We consider each project within the context of its mission and community.”
“It is an honor to have served clients in the Boston area five decades and counting,” added Jewhurst. “And we look forward to continuing our tradition of collaboration and innovation with them for a long time to come.”
