When designing a new office building located between Manhattan’s High Line Park and the Hudson River, Studio Gang wanted to protect the views between the park and the river and block as little sunlight as possible. The firm’s solution to this problem was to take on the sun as a freelance designer.
Expanding upon its “solar carving” design strategy, Studio Gang used incident angles of the sun’s rays to sculpt the Solar Carve Tower’s form. The result is a gem-like façade that allows light, fresh air, and river views to reach the park.
At any point during the year, the sun’s rays will be able to pour around the building’s unique façade, which takes the shape of an hourglass made up of smaller diamond-shaped carvings, to reach the surrounding park and green space.
On its website, Studio Gang says, “Solar Carve Tower explores how shaping a building in response to solar access and other site-specific criteria can expand its architectural potential.”
Each of the building’s floors will provide office space ranging from 13,700 sf to 14,200 sf, the New York Post reports. 16-foot-high floor-to-ceiling windows will provide each floor with natural light, views, and connectivity to the natural environment. Solar Carve Tower will also include 17,000 sf of ground floor retail. In total, the new tower will provide 166,750 sf of space.
The project is targeting LEED Gold.
Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.
Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.
Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.
Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.
Image courtesy of Studio Gang.
Related Stories
| Jan 31, 2013
The Opus Group completes construction of corporate HQ for Church & Dwight Co.
The Opus Group announced today the completion of construction on a new 250,000-square-foot corporate headquarter campus for Church & Dwight Co., Inc., in Ewing Township, near Princeton, N.J.
| Jan 31, 2013
More cities requiring large buildings to use EPA’s energy management and reporting
In 2012, Philadelphia joined several other U.S. cities in passing a requirement that large buildings use Portfolio Manager, the Environmental Protection Agency’s energy management tool, to measure and report energy performance.
| Jan 29, 2013
Astellas' New Headquarters for the Americas Earns LEED Gold Certification
The new headquarters for Astellas in the Americas in Northbrook, Ill., has been awarded LEED Gold certification by the USGBC.
| Jan 16, 2013
SOM’s innovative Zhengzhou Greenland Plaza opens
The 2.59-million-square-feet building houses a mixed-use program of offices on its lower floors and a 416-room hotel.
| Dec 9, 2012
The owner’s perspective: high-rise buildings
Douglas Durst on the practicalities of development: “You must think about a building from the inside out.”
| Nov 28, 2012
Project team to showcase design for first mixed-use retail center of its kind in Mexico City
Project reaching construction milestone, offering national model for urban development in Mexico.
| Nov 6, 2012
Goettsch Partners designs new tower in Shunde, China
200-meter-tall building will be located between Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
| Nov 1, 2012
Greenbuild 2012 Report: Green Architecture Firms
Design firms deliver gold, platinum, even net-zero projects
| Oct 17, 2012
Denver office building makes use of single-component wall system for retrofit
The Building Team selected Centria's Formawall Dimension Series to help achieve the retrofit project's goals of improved aesthetics, sustainability, and energy efficiency.
