Shigeru Ban’s elegant Metal Shutter Houses may lack coordination
524 West 19th Street
From the June issue: From what’s been unveiled so far, the nearly completed project known as the Metal Shutter Houses, at 524 West 19th Street, should look splendid in both of its intended incarnations — “opened” and “closed.” In the first of these incarnations, with its shutters open, the building, developed by Heea Development LLC, will appear to be a pristinely cubic presence, 11 stories tall, with retail at street level. There’s a two-story penthouse and, below, eight additional duplexes. Each of these eight units, which make up the bulk of the building, has a nice-size balcony, also double height. The balconies unite with the right angles of the façade to create what to the casual observer appears to be the sort of elegant, minimalist exercise in pure geometry that has become one of the trademarks of Shigeru Ban, the gifted architect of the Metal Shutter Houses, working here with Dean Maltz. [more]
