TROPOLISM

I've been looking forward to writing about this building. The sidewalk protection went down a week or so ago, making close-up pictures possible.

The tower is on Tenth Avenue at 24th Street. What has caught my eye, since they clad it, is its warm, copper-colored hue. It almost appears to be wood. Upon closer inspection, it is wood! Finally, someone in the USA used one of those European exterior-grade plywood panel systems I've been looking at for years.

More pictures after the jump...

One of the wonderful things about this material is that when it is next to New York Brick buildings, it works well. Many residential projects use any of a dozen materials developed in the last ten to fifteen years, and the materials look plastic, dead, boring. Even stone these days looks like it's a vinyl tile. Yet somehow, these wood panels, which have exposed fasteners and whose edges are clearly visible, feels warm, fitted, kind.

Obviously, the material is a little frail. New York jobsites are not used to handling such delicacies.

The other thing I adore about this building is that it integrates all the residential windows, A/C grilles, spandrel panels, and column-covers into a finely knitted quilt. It's a pleasure to look at. We hope that the street level will be finished with as much care and finesse.