The Watson Institute evolved from Thomas J. Watson Jr.'s vision of a research and teaching center that would address the most pressing global problems of the day.Originally dispersed across five locations on the Brown University campus, the Watson Institute is now consolidated on a site near its center. It is the first building in a new academic quadrangle being developed by the university. The design seeks to maximize interaction among research groups, mainly by organizing circulation in a...
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The Watson Institute evolved from Thomas J. Watson Jr.'s vision of a research and teaching center that would address the most pressing global problems of the day.Originally dispersed across five locations on the Brown University campus, the Watson Institute is now consolidated on a site near its center. It is the first building in a new academic quadrangle being developed by the university. The design seeks to maximize interaction among research groups, mainly by organizing circulation in a triple-height atrium that runs nearly the entire length of the block-long site and bathes the interior in natural light.

The spaces that make up the shared resource "pods" of the program are on one side of the atrium in two distinct glazed cubic volumes that mark the back of the site. The street-side façade contains spaces intended for use by a limited number of people. The atrium then becomes the common point of transfer from any area of the building to another, bringing together the disparate constituencies that occupy the facility. Architect: Rafael Vinoly
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