건축 Snøhetta gets go ahead for public garden at Phillip Johnson's AT&T building

[하루맨]

Johnson completed Madison in 1984 with John Burgee, 550 Madison. Formerly home to companies AT&T and Sony, it is regarded as the first skyscraper in the controversial postmodern style, which emerged in the late 1970s as an ideological reaction against the utopian ideals of modernism.

Snøhetta's original scheme, revealed in 2017, included plans to replace portions of the exterior with an undulated curtain wall of translucent glass, which prompted criticism and protests from the architecture industry. The team revised the proposal is more a stripped-back design and intends to restore many features to Johnson's original intention and sprucing up the existing brickwork.

A series of circular forms will also be included in the garden to take cues from Johnson's circular motifs at 550 Madison, like the large circular window defining its front entrance and the arches in the lobby.

Pavings will be laid in circular shapes to mark different areas in the public space, including The Living Room, The Waterfall Room, The Tree Room and The Picnic Room.

Construction on the garden will begin this year and the building's interior renovation is currently underway, and over 50 per cent complete.

In addition to 550 Madison, Snøhetta is also working on a waterfront community centre in Denmark, Ford's Research & Engineering Center, and a public library building in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Renderings are by Snøhetta and MOARE.