Gehry Partners LLP
New York by Gehry
New York, New York
At 870 feet tall, New York by Gehry is the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere and a singular addition to the iconic Manhattan skyline.
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
The 76-story apartment tower, clad in flat and undulating stainless steel panels, is located on a 44,000 square foot site between Spruce Street on the North and Beekman Street on the South.
Photo Keith Mendenhall
At the base of the tower is a simple four story brick podium, housing a public school, which was designed to be in the spirit of the neighboring buildings.
Photo Kristen Richards ArchNewsNow
There are through block plazas on both the East and West side of the building. The West Plaza creates a landscaped setting for a porte cochere that gives car and pedestrian access to the residential lobby.
Gehry began by using the classical proportions of New York City towers and the traditional setback rules which have created the tall wedding cake designs typical in the city. He used these guidelines to create the initial massing of the building.
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
He then developed the design to accommodate bay windows which the client requested in each unit. Rather than align the bay windows vertically, he moved them slightly from floor-to-floor and adjusted their sizes from unit-to-unit. Through many studies of this Gehry realized that the bays created the impression of fabric draping over the building, so the design was developed to accentuate this effect. Gehry refers to this as “Bernini folds,” a reference to the 17th century Italian sculptor, Gian Lorenzo Bernini.
Photo Keith Mendenhall
Seven sides of the tower have this configuration, while the south side of the tower is sheared into a flat plane that contrasts the curvature of the other facades and strengthens the sculptural composition. The flat side is essential to the power of the building.
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
Due to the undulating facade each floor of the tower and each residential unit on the seven undulating sides have a different configuration. Gehry Partners designed the apartment interiors to take best advantage of these unique conditions, with large windows framing views and creating window seats on some of the large window sills that are created by the movement of the wall from floor to floor. The bay windows also afford residents the opportunity to step out past the plane of the exterior wall in what Gehry calls “stepping into space” and to have the feeling of being suspended over the whole of Manhattan.
The apartments range in size from 450 square foot studios to 1700 square foot 3 bedroom apartments at the top of the tower. Gehry Partners has planned these units to maximize the efficiency of the plans while creating homes with beautiful finishes and light filled rooms. An enclosed swimming pool and other residential amenities are on the roof of the podium.
For interior views and more information please visit:
New York by Gehry
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
Sketch
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
Model
Photo courtesy Gehry Partners LLP
Model studies
Total area: 1.1 million square feet
Completed: 2011
Client: Forest City Ratner Companies
Architect: Gehry Partners, LLP
Design Partner: Frank Gehry
Project Partner: Terry Bell
Project Designer: Craig Webb
Project Architect: John Bowers
Project Manager: Amy Nicholson
Software Consultant: Gehry Technologies, Inc.
Project Manager: Sameer Kashyap
Structural Engineer: WSP Cantor Seinuk
Acoustical Consulting Engineers: Cerami & Associates
MEP Engineers: Jaros Baum & Bolles
Vertical Transportation: Joseph Neto & Associates
Site Civil Engineers: Philip Habib & Associates
Plaza and Landscape Designers: Field Operations
Geotechnical Engineering: Mueser Rutledge Consulting
Lighting Consultant: L'Observatoire International
Exterior Wall Consultant: Heitmann & Associates
Gehry Partners LLP arcspace features
November 21, 2011
