SKAGGS Blog

Ahhh Tribeca, home to the Tribeca Film Festival, The Odeon, a celebrity or two, SKAGGS and now one of the coolest and sexiest buildings I’ve seen in a long time. Construction has begun on a 20-story residential tower on 5 Franklin Place  and is designed by Dutch architect Ben van Berkel of UNStudio.

It doesn’t look like much now, but the renderings are absolutely gorgeous. I love the metal bands that wrap the building and after finding out that they’re not just for show, I love them even more.

The reflective metal bands of our building are almost sewn on, like a dress. They grow thinner and thicker, wrapping themselves around the building and generating different visual effects as they change. But they are not just graphic elements, they are three-dimensional. Sometimes these bands become balconies; other times they become sunscreens that protect the apartment interiors from excess sunlight and reflect excess heat. So they have a true function and a sustainable quality, too.

There’s a great interview/feature on Dezeen with sketches, plus an interview with Ben van Berkel himself. Highly recommended read.