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Zaha Hadid's first New York City Building Revealed

Zaha Hadid’s first New York City Building Revealed

Hana R. Alberts reports for Curbed NY

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Zaha Hadid may have lost out on the competition to design the High Line, but now the Iraqi-British starchitect is back in the ‘hood with a design for her very first New York City building. In fact, this time around, she beat out big names including Norman Foster—to whom she lost a competition to build an office tower at 425 Park Avenue—to get the gig. Hadid is known for dreaming up swooping, curving, space-age structures, and the 11-story condo building headed for 520 West 28th Street is no exception. Developed by Hudson Yards masterminds Related Companies, the site was actually quite limiting, according to New York Magazine’s preview, which kept Hadid’s grand swooshes in check. “You can’t really go wild,” she told NY Mag. Yet writer Carl Swanson observes that it still “comes off like the delightful Earth home for the weary intergalactic superrich,” with two wings of uneven heights, a chevron pattern on the exterior, rounded corners, and jutting-out terraces that make the facade excitingly far from uniform.

More about the 37 apartments within, and the amenities >>
Within the 11 stories, Related says in a release issued this morning, will be “37 residences of up to 5,500 square feet, focusing on expansive, gracious layouts with 11-foot ceilings, thoughtful technological integration and state-of-the-art finishes and features. Designed with multiple elevator cores, a majority of the residences will have a private vestibule and entrance that adds to the intimacy of the building.” There will also be a double-height entrance lobby, communal spaces, and outdoor garden. Other amenities include a substantial roof terrace, indoor pool and spa, entertainment space, and playrooms.

And now, just because we can, more about Hadid’s imaginative visions (which she thinks most New York City neighborhoods are too staid to handle):

Hadid is a fan of Mad Men, and the developer jokingly called the split-level unit the “Don Draper apartment.” Her firm is designing the ­interiors as well, including lobby walls for which they are experimenting with ­”water-jetted” marble, giving them a ­frozen-in-stone ­liquid patterning.
Welcome to the ring, Zaha.

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