Function & Aesthetics

What the architects seem to have had in mind as a function for this building was mostly research. As critics have noted since the time of its completion, the building looks "like a giant bookstack." There was another aspect to the look as well, as the architects were aware of, provided for, and advertised the use of the computer in the building and in scientific research. It is this "scientific, computer look" advertised by Gertrude Gray, chief interior designer for the building, that Brown students animated in 2000 by turning one wall into a giant Tetris game.

Apart from this "scientific" look already mentioned, the building responds to its times in many other ways. The decision to build a tower might have several motivations. One of them would be the rather practical concern for land and the limits that such an expansion on the hilltop began to face at the time. At the same time, however, the tower shape was in fashion -- just like the New Brutalist aesthetic of rough concrete texture was an option when the architects envisioned the building.

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