475 Clermont is a 12-story building with 363 residences that opened last April at the intersection of two Brooklyn, N.Y., neighborhoods, Fort Greene and Clinton Hill.
Designed by Aufgang Architects, with interiors by Durukan Design, and built by Broadway Construction Group, 475 is the first residential development in New York City for RXR Realty. To help call attention to the building, the developer commissioned a 90-foot-tall, 5,800-sf exterior mural painted by Mona Caron, a Swiss-born and San Francisco-based artist who is known for her community-specific and multistory artworks that highlight urban flora.
To select a wildflower for the mural that was indigenous to Fort Greene’s landscape, Caron worked with the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s curator of native plants and the NYC Greenbelt Native Plant Center on Staten Island. Her choice—the Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa)—is a medicinal plant used by Native Americans.
Caron completed the mural in 10 days working with assistance from the firm No Entry Design; and Anne-Laure Lemaitre, an independent curator. (A time lapse video of their work can be viewed here.)
The 12-story 475 Clermont Building is RXR Realty's first residential project in New York City. Image: Courtesy of RXR
The mural is painted onto the side of an adjacent building that overlooks 475 Clermont’s courtyard, and is visible exclusively to its residents. RXR also worked with horticulturalists from Blue Plant NYC that picked up the mural’s theme within the building’s landscaping so that residents could touch and smell the plant as well.
The cost of the mural, which was unveiled last May, was not disclosed.
Mona Caron - Brooklyn Weeds from RXR Realty on Vimeo.
Related Stories
Codes and Standards | Jul 17, 2018
In many markets, green features are more of a requirement for apartment renters
Renters in many U.S. cities have come to expect green features in apartments that they rent, with an eye toward energy efficiency and healthy indoor air.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 13, 2018
Student housing vs. multifamily housing—what are the differences?
While student and multi-family housing share a common building form, it’s the student resident that drives the innovation of new spaces.
Multifamily Housing | Jul 11, 2018
Meet the ‘CoHaus’: N.Y. developer unveils large-scale flats concept for boomers, Gen Xers
With its new CoHaus development, Ward Capital Management is betting on baby boomers downsizing and Gen Xers upsizing.
Sponsored | Multifamily Housing | Jul 10, 2018
Renovated mixed-use development features more desirable rentals
Multifamily Housing | Jul 2, 2018
17-unit condominium will rise one block south of Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood
SPF:architects is designing the building.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 27, 2018
To take on climate change, go passive
If you haven’t looked seriously at “passive house” design and construction, you should.
Market Data | Jun 19, 2018
America’s housing market still falls short of providing affordable shelter to many
The latest report from the Joint Center for Housing Studies laments the paucity of subsidies to relieve cost burdens of ownership and renting.
Multifamily Housing | Jun 13, 2018
Multifamily visionaries: KTGY’s extraordinary expectations
KTGY Architecture + Planning keeps pushing the boundaries of multifamily housing design in the U.S., Asia, and the Middle East.
| May 30, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: An AEC giant’s roadmap for integrating design, manufacturing, and construction
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), Skender CEO Mark Skender and Chief Design Officer Tim Swanson present the construction giant’s vision for creating a manufacturing-minded, vertically-integrated design-manufacturing-build business model.
| May 30, 2018
Accelerate Live! talk: From micro schools to tiny houses: What’s driving the downsizing economy?
In this 15-minute talk at BD+C’s Accelerate Live! conference (May 10, 2018, Chicago), micro-buildings design expert Aeron Hodges, AIA, explores the key drivers of the micro-buildings movement, and how the trend is spreading into a wide variety of building typologies.