LVMH Tower
New York, New York · 1999
Photo · Photo by Wade Zimmerman
A precedent for integrating a highly sculptural, folded glass curtain wall within a dense, historic urban streetscape.
- What we like about this project
- The dramatic diagonal fold that pinches the glass facade inward as it rises.
Materials
- glass
- white-fritted-glass
- terracotta
- stone
- steel
Visual identifiers
- folded-glass-facade
- crystalline-geometry
- curtain-wall
- urban-infill
Style tags
- deconstructivist
- sculptural
- high-tech
Visual tags
- deconstructivism
- high-rise
- glass-envelope
- historic-contrast
- commercial
- Geometry
- The tower features a folded, crystalline glass curtain wall with a sharp diagonal crease, contrasting with the orthogonal masonry block in the foreground.
- Facade system
- Angled and folded glass curtain wall with varying levels of transparency and fritting.
- Structural guess
- Steel frame with concrete slabs and a cantilevered curtain wall system
- Spatial scale
- High-rise scale, towering over a historic multi-story masonry commercial building.
- Lighting
- Bright, direct daylight casting sharp shadows and highlighting the contrast between the reflective glass facets.
- Atmosphere
- Dynamic and sharp, defined by the contrasting textures of historic stone and modern folded glass.
- Environmental context
- Dense, high-rise urban street canyon in midtown Manhattan with active vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
- Spatial experience
- From the street, the building presents a dramatic vertical fold that catches light differently across its faceted surfaces, creating a dynamic sense of movement.
- Composition rhythm
- A vertical crease divides the glass facade into two main angled planes, contrasting with the regular grid of the adjacent masonry building.
- Style reading
- Late-twentieth-century deconstructivist glass architecture
- Program
- Commercial office and retail headquarters
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture
- Materials
- glass, white-fritted-glass, terracotta, stone, steel
- Visual identifiers
- folded-glass-facade, crystalline-geometry, curtain-wall, urban-infill
- Style tags
- deconstructivist, sculptural, high-tech
- Visual tags
- deconstructivism, high-rise, glass-envelope, historic-contrast, commercial
- Geometry
- The tower features a folded, crystalline glass curtain wall with a sharp diagonal crease, contrasting with the orthogonal masonry block in the foreground.
- Facade system
- Angled and folded glass curtain wall with varying levels of transparency and fritting.
- Structural guess
- Steel frame with concrete slabs and a cantilevered curtain wall system
- Spatial scale
- High-rise scale, towering over a historic multi-story masonry commercial building.
- Lighting
- Bright, direct daylight casting sharp shadows and highlighting the contrast between the reflective glass facets.
- Atmosphere
- Dynamic and sharp, defined by the contrasting textures of historic stone and modern folded glass.
- Environmental context
- Dense, high-rise urban street canyon in midtown Manhattan with active vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
- Spatial experience
- From the street, the building presents a dramatic vertical fold that catches light differently across its faceted surfaces, creating a dynamic sense of movement.
- Composition rhythm
- A vertical crease divides the glass facade into two main angled planes, contrasting with the regular grid of the adjacent masonry building.
- Style reading
- Late-twentieth-century deconstructivist glass architecture
- Program
- Commercial office and retail headquarters
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture