New York, New York, USA
Situated on the edge of Manhattan’s Flatiron and Chelsea districts, the Flatiron Aerie designed by Lee F. Mindel and Reed A. Morrison, is a 12th-floor rooftop space offering the potential of four façade exposures and roof access incorporating a collection of furniture and decorative arts by 20th-century artists and architects.
The Flatiron Aerie has recently been awarded a 2022 American Architecture Award by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
Large-scale fenestration was cut into all four facades as well as the foot to incorporate vistas from the Hudson to the East Rivers and from the Statue of Liberty to the Empire State Building.
The presence of this building’s water tank as well as those throughout the city’s landscape inspired the form that generates the division of spaces, yet permits views and layers of transparency throughout.
A carefully crafted object derived from pure geometry sculpts and differentiates the public area, offers exposure to the sky plane above, and access to the roof, and acts as an entry and gallery space.
The pure geometric forms are comprised of a rotunda and a glass cage rising through the ceiling.
The curved glass vault frees the rotunda as it comes through the roof. Punches in the rotunda reveal the shape of the double helix stainless steel and concrete stair.
The stair leads to a sitting room with unobstructed views of the north and south-oriented semi-enclosed birch tree roof garden. The south garden’s parapet walls are punched on the east and west façades to provide framed views from river to river.
In contrast, the north view through the water tower is completely open and urban with the neighboring buildings’ water towers lit from the addition.
The roof addition sitting room is a part water tower, part periscope, and part observation tower crowned by a metal brise-soleil similar to the crown of the Statue of Liberty.
The public spaces are separated from the private spaces by an L-shaped service bar with two layers of floor-to-ceiling sliding panels. Many combinations of the panels in open-closed positions layer the space.
The service bar contains all bathrooms, storage areas, a washer/dryer, and a kitchen. In addition to its operable panels, it is further delineated by the aggregate quartz concrete floor.
The structural beam and concrete bay system in the public and private areas is expressed in the ceiling and reflected in the oak and cherry wood floors.
A natural palette of plaster, stainless steel, wood, white structural glass, and custom-designed furniture, upholstery, lighting, rugs, and rubberized latex mats have a dialog with a rare collection of furniture and objects by 20th-century architects, ceramists, sculptors, and artists.
The city, architecture, and interior synthesize in a seamlessly integrated environment.
As this project was designed 25 years ago, it has undergone a new iteration in 2019 which has simultaneously enabled a forward glance at the integration of architecture and design and a look back as to what stands the test of time.
Project: Flatiron Aerie
Architects: Shelton Mindel
Lead Architect: Lee F. Mindel
Associate Architects: Reed A. Morrison Architect
General Contractor: Shelton Mindel
Client: Lee F. Mindel
Photographers: Michael Moran
