The Real Deal New York

The iconic Seagram Building is 38-story tower between 52nd and 53rd Streets, with more than 820,000 rentable square feet. The building was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and built in 1956-58, becoming the first office building to have floor-to-ceiling glass windows. British architectural historian Dan Cruickshank called the building Americas finest skyscraper. The Modernist edifice, a designated landmark, features a huge Picasso in the lobby and is home to the world-famous Four Seasons and Brasserie restaurants. The building has become a status symbol for tenants, part of the country club of Midtown office towers. Financial firms figure prominently among the tenants, including Singapore state investment company Temasek; Atlas Merchant Capital, co-founded by former Barclays CEO Bob Diamond; Arden Asset Management; and private-equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice. Other tenants have included NASCAR, ConocoPhillips and the law firm Sullivan & Cromwell. Aby Rosen and Michael Fuchs RFR Holding paid $375 million to acquire the building at auction in 2000; the firm bought a 39 percent stake from Peter Brandt for $160 million in 2011, later buying out remaining shareholder Harry Lis. Rosen once said in an interview that owning the Seagram and the nearby Lever buildings was his greatest professional achievement, describing them as basically pieces of art. ¾-NE