Emerging from the subway station at the corner of 42nd Street and 6th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan there is a sight that can’t be missed, the imposing presence of the Grace Building. Fifty-stories high and located at the northeast intersection of both streets, this office building has a side entrance facing 6th Avenue and a main entrance opposite Bryant Park on 42nd Street. It towers over this park with a monolithic stance, distinctly visible in the Manhattan Skyline when it is observed from the southern tip of the island. Grace Building can be seen in the same frame as both the Pan Am and Chrysler Buildings, which stand to its east side, and also the Empire State Building, which sits to the south of it. Located in the heart of Midtown, it …show more content…
This pattern has dark tinted windows arranged in groupings of seven with no marble divisions between them; the five windows in the center of the grouping are slightly wider than the two on the outer sides, again leading our eyes up to emphasize the height of the building. They again sit flat on the skin and these giant rectangular window groupings are arranged in three vertical rows. Above the side door we have the word “Grace”, written in black cutout letters, placed on the marble covering. To the side of this door, closer to 43rd Street, we have another door leading into the restaurant on the back ground floor, which is called “Six”.
The top floor, like the first floor, deviates once more from the standard window height pattern. Its windows are smaller in height than all the ones in the middle part of the building. This is imperceptible looking at it from the ground, where the only effect of this difference is the created illusion that the building is still going up into the sky and is much taller that it actually
James F. O'Gorman, Dennis E. McGrath. ABC of Architecture. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1998. Document. October 2013.
With the Pantheon being built over 1700 years ago, it’s amazing that architects are still using features and techniques from this work of architecture in modern creations. The use of this type of classical architecture will continue to be used in works for public space due to its remarkable exterior appearance and it’s long lasting structural durability. When both Jesse hall and the Pantheon are compared it is possible to see their similarities from the types of domes that top each, their external facades, and their interior plan. While they share many similarities, the differences that Bell and Binder used in their creation make this work of architecture unique to many other public spaces.
Amazing Grace is a story that addresses the poverty and poor conditions in the South Bronx, which has been left out in the cold and subjected to poverty and a lack of proper accommodations for its residents. The city became a refuge for the homeless that have been relocated from Manhattan in an effort to give the downtown area a more desirable appearance. With the residents of the Bronx struggling to survive in the environment they were born into, Johnathan Kozol gives us a glimpse into what life in the Bronx is like.
Over the last millennium, a striking Cathedral devoted to St. Paul has been a precious jewel for the city of London. It sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London. The present St Paul 's Cathedral, London, is an Anglican cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of London and the mother church of the Diocese of London. Regularly as the Cathedral is at the centre of many nation-wide events, innovations have been examined, and drastic new thoughts have found expression under the iconic dome. Bearing in mind all those occasions, it is certain that they would have left behind some physical evidence as well as reverberations in the imperceptible retention of the Cathedral itself.
On June 9, 2003, my life took an interesting turn. It was a sunny day. Blue skies, humidity insanely high, and I found myself at 4th Street and Constitution in Washington, D.C. I stood before an angled architectural masterpiece by famed architect I.M. Pei; its pointed corners jutted out towards the grassy Mall and Capitol Hill as if it were some sort of Picasso-esque compass pointing simultaneously towards all the tourist hot spots. (The one corner, purportedly the sharpest building corner in the world, wore a dark gray spot about eye level where thousands if not millions of tourists had touched it just to see how sharp it really was). I found myself standing before it, not as tourist . . . but as an employee on my first day of work.
In the Florence Cathedral, Florence, Italy, there is a cathedral church whose octagonal dome, built without the aid of scaffolding, was considered the greatest engineering feat of the early Renaissance. Dedicated to Santa Maria del Fiore, Our Lady of the Flower, it is also known as the Duomo, after the Italian word for cathedral. Created by many great Early Modern artists, this piece of architecture is a perfect example the Renaissance style. We can come to a better understanding of why this is so by exploring what the characteristics of the Renaissance “style”. To understand the properties of the Florence Cathedral that fit the Early Modern style, I will begin with a description and its history. The cathedral's architectural style, although greatly influenced by French Gothic elements remained distinctively Florentine, especially the geometric patterns of red, green, and white marble on the building's exterior. Construction of the cathedral began in 1294 on the site of a Christian church founded in the 6th or 7th century and continued until 1436. Several celebrated Italian architects were involved in the project, including Giotto, Arnolfo di Cambio, Andrea Orcagna, and, most notably, Filippo Brunelleschi, who was responsible for designing and building the dome. The cathedral's exterior is ornamented with sculpture and mosaics by Italian artists Donatello, Nanni di Banco, and Domenico Ghirlandaio, among others. The building's stained-glass windows are the work of the Italian architect and artist Lorenzo Ghiberti, and the interior is decorated with sculpture and fresco paintings by several Renaissance masters. Construction of the campanile (bell tower), situated to the right of the entrance to the Duomo, was begun by Giotto and completed according to his plans in 1359, after his death. Nearly 278 ft high, the campanile is embellished with red, green, and white marble panels of relief sculpture by Italian artists Andrea Pisano and Luca della Robbia, and niches with sculpted figures by Donatello and other masters. Facing the cathedral and campanile is a smaller, octagonal structure, the Baptistery of San Giovanni, noted for its gilt-bronze doors, elaborately worked in high relief by Andrea Pisano and Lorenzo Ghiberti. With that background information about the cathedral, one question comes to mind: what is it that makes the Renaissance style distinct? Renaissa...
As with many short stories, Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” only has a few pages to develop his main character and create a scenario he or she must learn from or achieve something from or change because of. In such a short amount of space, word choice is integral in constructing a solid impression of the characters and their personalities in the reader’s mind. Carver’s simple use of language and sentence structure combined with his choice for point of view creates an intriguing tone and believable character interaction.
of “the dizzying hustle of Eighth Avenue” or the Empire State Building (4). We can
Responding to its urban context, the sculpted facade establishes a distinctive identity for Cooper Square. The building’s corner entry lifts up to draw people into the lobby in a deferential gesture towards the institution’s historic Foundation Building. The façade registers the iconic, curving profile of the central atrium as a glazed figure that appears to be carved out of the Third Avenue façade, connecting the creative and social heart of the building to the street.
I had a chance to visit this building and as I stood under the edge of the building looking upward I was amazed by the beauty and precision, and stunned by the size and splendor. Inside I could not get past the entrance and a guard told me I wasn’t allowed to take pictures. The interior with its light colored marble walls and double height ceiling is breathtaking, I stood there and I felt a tremble run through my body. I can honestly say this is one of my favorite buildings in New York.
Every culture left a mark of its quality on New York’s buildings that change over time: some are old, some are new, some are tall, and some are small. They might have a lot in common, but not one building is like the other. Diversity is what makes New York.
(Image taken from Tranchtenberg, Marvin, Isabelle Hyman. Architecture: From Prehistory to Postmodernity. Second Edition. Prentice Hall, Inc. New Jersey: 2002.)
One World Trade Center (WTC) is the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere measuring up at 1776 feet tall. The built output sets new standards of design, construction, and prestige. Its beauty in New York City’s magical skyline makes it an icon. It is the most recognised and desirable office address in the world. In this essay I plan to argue that the social, political and economic status of society has affected the built output of this building considerably, for the good. Making the building one of the best skyscrapers in the world.
It takes a while to process everything that is going on, but once you see the whole picture, the smaller details come out and are noticeable, even within the visually assaulting Square. The tall buildings are the first things you recognize; just the sheer size of them makes you feel like a tiny, unremarkable speck of dust. Each has its own character and was created with a unique design. A uniting factor of the buildings is the windows. The glass surface reflects the afternoon sun’s light, making a giant mirror from the buildings’ sides. The mirrors create an enormous hall of other building’s distorted reflections. Hanging from the buildings are advertisements for everything under the sun. Many billboards are for the different musicals that are going to be shown at Broadway soon; the classics, like West Side Story, Phantom of the Opera, Annie, and Wicked, are always there. Others are announcing the release of a new HP laptop, or Samsung HDTV. Some unveil a high fashion store’s new fall line of sweaters and jeans. Of course, there is the obligatory Coke commercial, telling you to enjoy a refreshing bottle of ice cold Coke.
In developing this contemporary and iconic building, the design focuses on practical attributes and optimises energy efficiency. The design strategy encapsulates four key aspects: