New York, NY

The New 42nd Street, Inc. commissioned the firm to design a new office space on the 9th and 10th-floors of the New 42nd Street Studios. This 10-story, glass-sheathed building, located on West 42nd Street between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, houses 13 dance studios and an experimental theater.

Unlike the stark design of its studios, New 42nd Street, Inc. wanted rich, colorful, and warm office interiors. The resulting design incorporates a collage of colors, textures, and patterns to create a creative, energetic environment well suited for the administration of performing arts organizations. The plan includes a reception area, small conference room, director’s office, pantry, 25-person, open-plan office on the 10th-floor of the building. and a 35-seat conference room on the 9th floor.

The sequence of spaces is defined by the five support boxes that form the center precinct and the office’s functional backbone. The goal was to locate support services as close as possible, yet with physical, visual and acoustical separation.

On the 9th-floor, a 900 square-foot conference room runs along the length of the south facade of the building, offering floor-to-ceiling views of 42nd Street. This view is contrasted with a photographic mural, pre-revitalization, that runs the length of the north wall.

CLIENT: The New 42nd Street Inc.
COMPLETION: 2001
SIZE: 6,300 square feet
COST: $1.3 million