Rudolph Penthouse at 23 Beekman Place, (Manhattan, NY),1977, Gesamtkunstwerk
PENTHOUSE AT 23 BEEKMAN PLACE
The penthouse at 23 Beekman Place in upper Manhattan, NY, was rented by Paul Rudolph in 1965. He purchased the entire building in 1976 and began renovated the entire structure from top to bottom. He remodeled the façade using materials such as glass, concrete and steel. The area that the building was located in was mainly residential, with mostly low-height buildings. With minimal interference on the views, Rudolph decided to create a structure that would frame the spectacular views across the city to the west and to the river to the east. Using concrete and a steel system, he was able to design an extension that cantilevered the penthouse on the front and back of the building, with openings on top and views from all sides.
Paul Rudolph was a dedicated modernist. He explored abstract space and experimented with industrial processes and materials. The structure was renovated in a concrete and steel framed system that clamped on to the roof allowing the spaces to be designed in a free-form, open plan. The original north and south façades had to be rebuild to withstand the new load of the cantilevering penthouse. With that, he had the opportunity to create a structure that could accommodate terraces, mezzanines, and free flowing, multi level floor plans based on the function of the rooms. The building was only four stories high, but there were 17 different floor levels in total throughout the building.
The penthouse is entered through it’s own private elevator. Stairs lead into a three walled library, with the fourth wall framing the view of the river to the east. A small level change onto a terrace that leads to the double height living room. Ascending once more there is a mezzanine level that contains the office area. Upon crossing the bridge, the bedrooms and guest rooms could be accessed. On the next level, the kitchen, dining room and another guest room were all laid out.
The circulation of the building was arranged with a clear separation between public and private spaces, with the distinction being made by a floating staircase and a transparent plexiglass bridge. Although there was a seemingly clear distinction in the programs relational placement, Rudolph utilized level changes and openings between floors to organization of the volumes in a way that created views and vistas throughout the home. The transitions between the spaces were varied volumetrically with heights and widths that generate a sense of velocity that is both dynamic and serene. The delicate, seemingly floating stairs throughout the home merge seamlessly with the expanses of built-in book shelves. The penthouse also lacked doors, which enabled spaces to flow into each other, and Rudolph highlights that intimacy with his use of materials that are transparent, glossy, opaque, reflective and surfaces such as strategically placed mirrors.
Paul Rudolph was a modernist who designed with concern for economical approaches and welcomed the opportunity to solve design problems. He has a preference for modular systems, as he thought it best that architects “speak the language of modularity” on every scale, maintaining that, a skillful architect should be able to manipulate a modular system tp conform to any concept they have, rather than being constrained by that system.
“The movement of space has velocity, for space flows much in the manner of water from one volume to another. Especially important are the ‘connections’ between one spatial volume to another.”
— Paul Rudolph
Bibliography:
"Penthouse at 23 Beekman Place, DESIGNERS Paul Rudolph, Donald Luckenbill (Project Architect) and Vincent J. Desimone (Structural Engineer), LOCATION New York, NY, USA, DATE 1977–88." Key Interiors since 1900, 2013.
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