A complex system of modular arches, which vary in response to programmatic conditions, clads the new mixed-use supertall’s ascending setbacks.
A recent piece in the Architect’s Newspaper’s Facades+ column took a closer look at the rigorous design logic behind 520 Fifth Avenue’s modular arched windows and historic references. The mixed-use supertall tower is a vertical village, stacking a members’ club, boutique offices, and luxury residences, clad with arches that modulate in relation to the buildings’ interior programs.
The article put 520 Fifth Avenue’s arched façade in conversation with “nearby Beaux Arts landmarks Grand Central Terminal and the New York Public Library” as well as other classically inspired supertall towers erected in New York City in recent years, such as the Brooklyn Tower by SHoP and 270 Park Avenue by Foster + Partners. The historic references of 520 Fifth Avenue lie not only in its form, but its craft. The terra cotta base ascends into an aluminum-paneled upper tower, finished with a treatment that delivers a consistent tone and texture of terra cotta to the façade. The material palette of the building, also including bronze-finished aluminum arches and plaster lunette vaults, offers the consideration of 20th century craft with the performance needs of a 21st century skyscraper.
