new york residential building by heatherwick studio will connect beneath the high line

plans have been revealed for a residential development in new york designed by heatherwick studio. comprising two towers that connect beneath the high line, ‘515 west 18th street’ is located at the heart of chelsea’s art gallery district in close proximity to zaha hadid’s 520 west 28th street condo building. the project has been conceived as a reinterpretation of the neighborhood’s warehouse architecture, with bulging bay windows that resemble those seen in the heatherwick-designed zeitz museum of contemporary art africa.

all images courtesy of the related companies

images of the project were first seen on cityrealty, with the project already appearing on the website of related — the developers behind the scheme. the taller of the two structures will rise to 21 stories, with 515 west 18th street containing approximately 180 one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom residences. available renderings illustrate a custom masonry façade, with vegetation shown on the roofs of both towers.

‘with a site crossing both sides of the high line there was a unique opportunity to celebrate the urban texture of the elevated park and the distinct character of the chelsea neighborhood,’ explains thomas heatherwick, founder of heatherwick studio. ‘the studio wanted to create a new kind of panoramic visual connection for the building’s residents and re-conceived the residential bay window as a three-dimensional sculpted piece of glazing that provides light-filled interiors as well as exciting internal moments.’

the project has been conceived as a reinterpretation of the neighborhood’s distinct warehouse architecture

‘at the smallest scale the raw brick exterior, influenced by chelsea’s heritage of industrial brick buildings, will give a handmade feel and micro texture to the façade,’ heatherwick continues. ‘at the largest scale, the use of the three-dimensional windows will add another distinctive layer of textural character to the fabric of the city.’

curbed also reports (via 6sqft) that architect robert a.m. stern will design another residential development nearby. meanwhile, heatherwick’s ‘515 west 18th street’ has been approved by city authorities with occupancy anticipated for 2020.