Atlantic Yards B2 Tower
There is steady progress at the site of the future world's tallest modular tower. According to ESD and Forest City Ratner, 246 modules out of approximately 960 have been delivered and installed to date. The 32 story tower is composed of three main volumes, each with their own unique facade articulation. The red and grey paneled volume along Flatbush Avenue has approximately reached its half way mark in height, while the second volume of light grey panels along Dean Street has seen the installation of 4 out of 18 floors of modules. The third volume of the tower will rise above the lower two. When completed, the 346,000 square foot tower will bring 363 rental apartments to the area, half of which will fall under the affordable housing program.
The west facade of the Barclays Center (left) and the B2 tower (right) on Flatbush Avenue.
Detail of the corner facade at Flatbush Avenue and the Barclays Center arena.
Detail of the Flatbush Avenue facade.
The corner of Flatbush Avenue and Dean Street.
The Dean Street facade.
Detail of the Dean Street facade.
Corner detail of the Dean Street facade.
The corner of the Dean Street facade.
Looking west along Dean Street.
Architects: SHoP Architects; Developers: Forest City Ratner; Program: Residential; Location: Atlantic Yards, Brooklyn, NY; Completion: 2015.
432 Park Avenue
Topping out is about to happen at Rafael Vinoly's 432 Park Avenue tower in Midtown. The 96 story tower is a few floors away from reaching its final height of 1396 feet. When completed, the tower will rise above the highest inhabitable floor of the new One World Trade Center, which achieves its full height of 1776 feet with the help of a 408 foot spire.
Looking south on Park Avenue.
Detail of the top of the tower.
The northwest corner of the tower from East 57th Street.
The north facade of the tower from East 57th Street.
Detail of the window units on the tower facade.
The northeast corner of 432 Park Avenue (right) and 450 Park Avenue (left) by Emery Roth & Sons in 1972.
The east facade of 432 Park Avenue (left) and 450 Park Avenue (right).
The southeast corner of the tower from East 56th Street.
Reflections on 430 Park Avenue.
The south facade of the tower from East 56th Street.
432 Park Avenue framed by the Citigroup Center tower.
View from the Museum of Modern Art's Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden.
Architects: Rafael Vinoly Architects (Design Architect), SLCE Architects, LLP (Executive Architects); Program: Residential, Retail; Location: Midtown East, New York, NY; Completion: 2015.
Hunter's Point South Commons and Hunter's Point South Crossing
Work progresses at the first two buildings of the Hunters Point South development in Long Island City, Queens. Exterior wall installation on both of the SHoP Architects' designed towers is steadily proceeding. On Building A, the tower with orange exterior accents, glass has reached floor 9 of 37 with vertical fin installation also underway. Building B, with blue exterior accents, has reached floor 10 of 32. Inside, interior wall installation has begun on the lower floors of each tower. When completed, the two buildings will bring a combined total of 925 units of much needed affordable housing to the city.
Looking east from Gantry Plaza State Park.
Looking east from the pier at Gantry Plaza State Park.
The southwest corner of Building A.
The west facade of Building A from Hunters Point South Park.
The southeast corner of Building A.
The south facade of Building A from the upper floor of Building B.
Detail of the south facade of Building A.
Detail of Building A's exterior wall.
Detail of Building A's exterior wall.
Detail of Building A's exterior wall.
The southwest corner of Building A.
View of Manhattan and Gantry Plaza State Park from the western terrace of Building A.
View of Manhattan and Hunters Point South Park from the western terrace of Building A
View of the west facade of Buildings A and B from Hunters Point South Park.
View of Buildings A and B from Hunters Point South Park.
The southwest corner of Building B (right) and the southern facade of the Riverview School (left).
The southeast corner of Building B.
The south facade of Building B.
Detail of Building B's exterior wall.
Exterior wall type transition at the southeast corner of Building B.
Looking up from the interior courtyard of Building B.
The view from the roof of Building B.
A view from Building B of the sites for future phases of Hunters Point South. A two tower building by ODA Architects will be located on Parcel C (foreground) with future buildings located on land directly to the south.
Architects: SHoP Architects and Ismael Leyva Architects; Developers: Related, Phipps Houses and Monadnock Construction; Construction Company: Monadnock Construction; Program: Residential; Location: Long Island City, Queens, NY; Completion: 2015.
CUMC Medical and Graduate Education Building
Construction has surpassed the half way mark at Columbia University Medical Center's Medical and Graduate Education Building. The 14-story building, a collaboration between Diller Scofidio + Renfro (design architects) and Gensler (executive architects), will house P&S, Nursing, Dental Medicine, the Mailman School of Public Health, and the biomedical departments. Inside, the tower contains classrooms, spaces for collaboration, and a simulation center. The tower's dominant feature is the "Study Cascade," a 14-story open stair along the south facade that provides spaces for study and for social engagement to encourage collaboration among all of the disciplines housed together.
Looking north along Haven Avenue.
Detail of the "Study Cascade."
The southeast corner of the building.
The south facade.
The southwest corner of the building.
The east facade from Haven Avenue.
Detail of the east facade.
Detail of the northeast corner.
Aerial rendering of the completed building. Courtesy of CUMC.
Architects: Diller Scofidio + Renfro with Gensler; Program: Education; Location: Washington Heights, New York, NY; Completion: 2016.
500 W 21
Installation of limestone facade panels has begun at KPF's 32-unit residential building adjacent to the High Line.
Architects: KPF; Interiors: MARKZEFF; Landscape Design: Rees Roberts + Partners; Program: Residential; Location: Chelsea, New York, NY; Completion: 2015.
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VIA 57 WEST at 625 West 57th Street
BIG's residential pyramid is rising on Manhattan's far west side, reaching to the eleventh floor of its completed 32 story height. Also taking shape is the central courtyard that cuts through the pyramid form, opening up views to the Hudson River for the interior units.
Looking west on West 57th Street.
The west elevation from West 57th Street.
At the intersection of West 57th Street and the West Side Highway.
Looking north along the West Side Highway with One Riverside Park (Goldstein, Hill & West Architects) rising to the north.
The central courtyard starting to take shape.
Looking east along the West Side Greenway with One Riverside Park rising on the left.
The serrated edge of the north facade along West 58th Street at 12th Avenue.
Looking west along West 58th Street at the back side of the building.
Architects: BIG (Design Architects), SLCE Architects (Architects of Record); Program: Residential, Retail; Location: Midtown West, New York, NY; Completion: 2015.
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10 Bond & 372 Lafayette
Structure has topped out and the first window units are being installed on the second floor of Selldorf Architects' seven-story, 11 unit condo in NoHo. The window frames are brown in color, to complement the sculpted terracotta facade. On the northeastern half of the block, Morris Adjmi Architects' 372 Lafayette, a rental building, has reached its full height of six floors.
Looking north at the corner of Lafayette Street and Bond Street.
The Bond Street facade.
Window units on the second floor of the Bond Street facade.
Window unit.
10 Bond Street (left) and 372 Lafayette (right) from Lafayette Street.
The northeast corner of 372 Lafayette.
Northeast corner detail.
The north facade of 372 Lafayette.
Architects: Selldorf Architects (10 Bond), Morris Adjmi Architects (372 Lafayette); Program: Residential, Retail; Location: NoHo, New York, NY;Completion: 2015.
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BIG Maze
BIG has just completed a modern take on the maze, constructed in the Great Hall of the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. The firm has approached the project with its signature methodology of rigorously evaluating form in relation to function to find new approaches to a design problem. This manner of design thinking is seen in every building they undertake, primarily conveyed in their signature diagrams.
The historical form of the maze, found in cultures around the world from ancient times, has been that of increasing confusion as one wanders further into its depths. To bring new life to the form, BIG has subtracted a convex form from the 18 feet high walls of the maze. The further you journey into the center of the maze, the better you understand the path you've taken, as the wall's height decreases. Not only does this lead to personal enlightenment, it is also a spectacular new way to encourage the visitor to reexamine the Renaissance detailing of the building through the dynamic framing of the walls.
View of the maze from the Great Hall.
Entrance to the maze.
Entrance podium.
Looking up within the maze.
View from the center of the maze.
View from the center of the maze.
The material selection of plywood by BIG sought to complement the earth tones of the Building Museum's interiors while contrasting with its Renaissance detailing through its sparseness of finish and form.
Walking through the maze.
Detail of the maze wall intersections.
Maze walls at the center.
Construction was achieved in just under a month with the help of work donated by local contractors. The base floor was constructed first, with a break in construction for a previously scheduled wedding in the Hall before resuming with the walls.
This formal approach of the warped surface eroding the field of walls from the top recalls Peter Eisenman's strategy for his sculptural memorial in Berlin. At the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Eisenman uses the warped surface of the ground to alter the visitor's relation to the concrete pillars. As you enter the field, the pillars are low, creating a bench or steps for children to jump between. The further in you proceed, their scale dramatically increases, becoming looming columns that block the light and instilling an unease that evokes the emotional effect of the Holocaust's atrocities.
Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Eisenman Architects, 2004
To add to the experience of BIG's maze, the visitor can gain a different perspective as they visit the upper levels of the museum and look down on its intricate paths from the colonnades.
Aerial perspective from the second floor colonnade.
Aerial perspective from the second floor colonnade.
The center of the maze.
Bjarke Ingels leading a tour in the maze.
Aerial perspective from the third floor colonnade.
Hopefully with the success of the maze, the museum will seek more opportunities to engage the public with architecture in a space which begs for elements that activate it and create a dialogue.
Architects: BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group); Program: Exhibition; Location: National Building Museum, Washington, D.C.; Completion: 2014.
22-22 Jackson Avenue
There is a mock-up on site at ODA's boxy residential project next to the 5 Pointz building in the Long Island City area of Queens. The signature protruding boxes on the facade will apparently be achieved with concrete that will be left exposed, similar to Vinoly's 432 Park Avenue tower currently rising in Midtown. Window frames will be of a maroon hue, an uncommon color choice for recent work in New York. Otherwise, progress on the actual building is still in the early stage of foundation work.
Architects: ODA; Program: Residential; Location: Long Island City, Queens, NY; Completion: 2016.
30 Park Place
Construction has reached the one third mark at Stern's 82-story downtown hotel and residential condo tower, slated to be the tallest residential tower in the neighborhood at 926 feet. That title will be short lived though, as the new Vinoly designed 22 Thames Street was recently revealed to be 960 feet tall .
The first 38 floors will be devoted to the 185-room Four Seasons Hotel, with 157 condo units occurring above. The exterior facade of precast limestone panels has reached the 14th floor. As Stern has attempted in the past, the facade treatment appears to be an attempt at updating a classic limestone facade with contemporary detailing, especially at the base of the building.
The northwest corner at Park Place and Church Street.
The northeast corner along Park Place.
The southwest corner at Church Street and Barclay Street.
The north facade along Park Place.
The limestone panels at the podium.
Detail of the limestone panels at the podium.
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Architects: Robert A.M. Stern Architects; Program: Residential; Location: Lower Manhattan, New York, NY; Completion: 2016.