Crowd pleaser: LOT’s Flatiron Plaza installation opens to the public
‘Flatiron Sky-Line’, the first large public installation from New York-based architects studio LOT, has opened in Flatiron Plaza. The structure is made of colliding arches, which are studded with LED lights and hung with hammocks. Now opened, the installation has been finished off with the final addition to complete its structure – people.
Built specifically for the area, a busy thoroughfare surrounded by landmark buildings, the architects wanted an installation that would be visually impactful from all angles, rooftop to eye level.
With the location in mind, LOT directors Leonidas Trampoukis and Eleni Petaloti were keen to create a place that people would interact with. ‘People use this particular plaza as a resting spot during the day, as a meeting point and a site for contemplation within the busy intersection,’ says Trampoukis. ‘We wanted to embrace this intense atmosphere with an installation that is conceptually linked with all these practical and emotional states.’
The installation garnered a lot of attention during the installation: ‘There were hundreds of people gathering around during the three days of installation while the area was still blocked off wanting to jump on the hammocks, photographing the surrounding landmarks through the white structure,’ says Trampoukis, who sees the crowd as a compliment to the simplicity of the structure.
While the structure has been designed site specifically, the architects also wanted it to be an ‘abstract universal installation that celebrates interaction between the public and the surrounding context by experiencing the surroundings through a different lens’. They explain: ‘Although the structure draws its geometry from the New York site, it is a free-standing interactive art installation that will activate and light up other public spaces where it can be installed and engage in "conversation" with the new context and people.’
INFORMATION
’Flatiron Sky-Line’ will be on view until 2 January 2017. For more information, visit the LOT website
ADDRESS
Flatiron Plaza
E 23rd St
New York, NY 10010
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
Year in review: the top 10 cars of 2024, selected by transport editor Jonathan Bell
What are our cars of the year? We’ve scoured the archives to unveil the machines that most impressed us over the past 12 months, from retro revivals to high-tech EVs
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
An Indian mud house - and more, on Sketch Design Studio's natural material wonders
Sketch Design Studio in Rajasthan, India does wonders with the simplest ingredients
By Vaishnavi Nayel Talawadekar Published
-
Experience this Singapore apartment’s Zen-like qualities and cocooning urban haven
Welcome to Singapore apartment The Rasidence, a spacious, Zen-like interior by Right Angle Studio
By Daven Wu Published
-
A vacant Tribeca penthouse is transformed into a bright, contemporary eyrie
A Tribeca penthouse is elevated by Peterson Rich Office, who redesigned it by adding a sculptural staircase and openings to the large terrace
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
We walk through Luther George Park and its new undulating pavilion
Luther George Park by Trahan Architects and landscape architects Spackman Mossop Michaels opens to the public, showcasing a striking new pavilion installation – take a first look
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A vibrant new waterfront park opens in San Francisco
A waterfront park by leading studio Scape at China Basin provides dynamic public spaces and coastal resilience for San Francisco's new district of Mission Rock
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Tekαkαpimək Contact Station: a building ‘as inspiring as the endless forest and waterways of the land’
The new Tekαkαpimək Contact Station by Saunders Architecture with Reed Hilderbrand and Alisberg Parker Architects, opens at Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument in the USA
By Beth Broome Published
-
Entelechy II: architect John Portman's majestic beach home hits the market
Entelechy II, architect John Portman's beach residence in Georgia, USA, goes on the market; roll up, roll up for a home that is as grand as it is playful
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
First look: Honolulu's Victoria Place blends cosmopolitan living with Hawaii life and nature
Victoria Place is a new residential tower at Honolulu's Ward Village; take a first look at its interiors
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A look inside the home of George Homsey, one of the fathers of pioneering California modernist community Sea Ranch
George Homsey's home opens for the first time since his death, in 2019; see where the architect behind some of the designs for Sea Ranch, the pioneering California modernist community, lived
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Step inside a Brooklyn Brownstone that bridges old and new
'Brooklyn Brownstone' has been refreshed by Jon Powell Architects (JPA) and the result is a contemporary design rooted in modern elegance
By Ellie Stathaki Published