Every Building on Fifth

A glamorous production from architect Norman Jaffe, an architect better known for his highly romantic beach houses in the Hamptons, 565 Fifth Avenue was described as “Frank Lloyd Wright made sleek” by New York Times architectural critic Paul Goldberger.  The lobby is a dramatic assemblage of structural-based ornament; Emery Roth & Sons were the production… Continue reading

Although Warren & Wetmore’s legacy may have taken a hit with 560 Fifth Avenue, they have thus far fared better directly across the street at 562 Fifth Avenue, a slender mini-skyscraper in a subdued classical mode where changes at the ground floor level have been in keeping with the overall building.  

One of the saddest of the recent architectural travesties in Midtown, the beautiful Beaux Arts shop at 560 Fifth Avenue that Grand Central Terminal architects Warren & Wetmore produced for jeweler Jacob Dreicer in 1906 has recently had its black-and gold marble first floor removed and its façade overall obscured with a sign for the… Continue reading

One of the most bizarre architectural remnants of Gilded Age New York, 556 Fifth Avenue was constructed in 1912 to designs by New York Public Library architects Carrere & Hastings for the prestigious Knoedler Gallery, one of city’s oldest such institutions. Acquired by the Philippines government after Knoedler moved further uptown, in 1974 the façade… Continue reading

An intriguing building, 555 Fifth Avenue was originally designed in 1955 by Emery Roth & Sons and was a simple Mid-Century building similar to 529 Fifth Avenue.  Redesigned in 1993 by architect Der Scutt, the building was transformed, according to The New York Times, by “Caledonia gray flame-finished granite, mocha-colored semi-circular elements, sandstone aluminum panels… Continue reading