The greenhouse, where the botanical collection of Wellesley College is kept, became the winner of the Architizer A+ Awards 2021 in the category “New Technologies”.

Ekaterina Karpukhina

KVA

Photo: KVA

Wellesley College is known for its botanical collection. One of the greenhouses is named after Margaret K. Ferguson, an outstanding botanist and college member of the first half of the XX century. In 2018, it was decided to replace its original greenhouses with a newer and more global structure.

Photo: KVA

The Global Flora project, developed by the architectural firm Kennedy & Violich Architecture, Ltd. (KVA Matx), embodied Margaret’s vision of the greenhouse as a “laboratory under glass”. It is both a showcase of living beauty, emphasizing the forms of plants, and a place for interdisciplinary research and training, and an innovative example of sustainable design.

Architects have designed an “autonomous” greenhouse in which biomes can be heated and cooled using renewable resources. The building is covered with an ETFE (ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene) shell, which is a transparent membrane film that is resistant to moisture penetration and transmits light. In winter, it allows you to accumulate and retain heat, and in summer — to reduce the temperature of the space due to natural ventilation.

The curved structure follows the path from east to west and takes into account the relief of the Wellesley campus. In the center of the greenhouse is the iconic Durant tree, which is more than 140 years old. It is displayed in a transparent pavilion, where a comfortable temperature is maintained.

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