The Bryant is a 32-storey mixed-use tower building located on the south-west corner of Bryant Park, a nine-acre public park in Midtown Manhattan. Surrounded by historic landmark buildings, it faces the New York Public Library to the north, and is situated near the celebrated Beaux-Arts style Knox Building to the east. The building comprises a hotel that extends to the 14th floor, with private residences above. These two components are served by two separate lobbies at street level, with two adjacent retail units animating the street front.
The building articulates three separate parts following the traditional tripartite composition of the New York tower: base, middle and crown. The base occupies the full width of the site and contains a double-height ground floor as well as the first four levels of the hotel. A decreased footprint, together with an increased floor-to ceiling height for the hotel bar and lounge, mark the start of the central section. This set-back creates an outdoor terrace accessible to both hotel guests and residential tenants while maintaining the elevation pattern of alternating medium and high-rise buildings along 40th Street. The crown is established by double-height spaces for the two penthouses at the top of the tower.
Adhering to the conditions of the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the façade relates to the historic buildings nearby, offering a contemporary interpretation. The concrete mix contains different aggregates identical to the stone varieties found in the neighbouring buildings’ masonry façades. These polished precast concrete slabs and columns follow a tectonic grid composition lending the building a classical appearance and firmly asserting its place within the streetscape.
The concrete building structure extends into the interior of the residences, reinforcing a sense of architectural substance and identity. Built-in furnishings conceal storage spaces and appliances while dividing the spaces, removing the need for partition walls, and allowing uninterrupted views around the perimeter. Floor-to ceiling windows open on to Juliet balconies on the north and south façades for all residences, while the penthouses have double-height, colonnaded terraces with view over the city and park.
Concept Phase (6-Feb-2017)
The Bryant is the first large-scale residential project in New York designed by the internationally-acclaimed British practice David Chipperfield Architects. The penthouse boasts elegantly framed floor-to-ceiling windows and sleek sliding doors that blur the division between inside and outside. The carefully considered interiors feature a statement Red Jasper marble fireplace, a windowed bath with hand-carved solid marble freestanding tub, and custom designed fumed oak millwork cabinetry with ergonomic pulls and soft-close drawers.
The Bryant is located at 16 West 40th Street directly on Bryant Park and above a boutique hotel, showcasing master architect Sir David Chipperfield’s vision for city living and granting soon-to-be residents soaring views of the park and the dramatic skyline to the south featuring the Empire State Building. Due to its landmarked surroundings, The Bryant will be the final development site on Bryant Park.
A hallmark of David Chipperfield Architects' design ethos is intelligent simplicity, a trait magnificently apparent with the latest addition to its portfolio. “The idea that the structure and the façade are the same thing, made out of polished concrete, will give the building a tectonic and physical presence. Through this, the building is reduced down to elements of columns and windows, of solid and void, mass and space,” said Sir David Chipperfield. “I think you can make architecture out of very simple things, it doesn’t have to be complicated. The difference between a good building and a bad building normally resides in it being more thought about.”
Website The Bryant
