Last week, the Real Deal reported that Rafael Viñoly, The Starchitect Who Designed 432 Park Avenue, let loose during Douglas Elliman’s Elliman Talks series. He mentioned “screw ups” at 432 Park and slammed Robert Noel of Land Securities, who allegedly botched his designs at the much-criticized London “Walkie-Talkie” building. He said of Noel, “If I could, I would kill him.”
Now, Viñoly is apologizing for those comments.
“In the context of what we understood to be a private and off-the-record conversation, I expressed frustration, inartfully, about the consequences of my profession’s diminished position in the real estate development eco-system. Sometimes I get a little excited and say things that can easily be taken out of context and stripped of their humor. I have to improve,” he said in a statement.
“Part of the fun of an evening like the Douglas Elliman event last week is in relating anecdotes and banter about the collaborations that made 432 Park possible, my working relationship with Harry, and developers in general,” he added. “Harry is a dear friend, CIM is a great organization and 432 Park is without a doubt our most significant contribution to the New York City skyline; its success is testament to a symbiotic and positive relationship between architect and developer.”
As the Real Deal previously reported, when asked to name the projects of which he is most proud at the event, Viñoly pointed up at 432 Park. However, he also said that while he was generally happy with how the project had turned out, there were elements related to the interiors that he would “rip out.”
“This building has a couple of screw-ups, but it has integrity,” he said. –Christopher Cameron