279 Fifth Avenue
An overlooked but sophisticated design that melds elements of the Chicago School and Art Nouveau, 279 Fifth Avenue is set to be replaced by a major new development. Originally the location of John Fredrich & Bro., a specialist importer of antique violins and musical instruments, the building has a delicate set of stained glass windows… Continue reading
144 Fifth Avenue
A survivor from the Avenue’s earliest period, the altered 1851 townhouse at 144 Fifth Avenue preserves original details at its upper floors. A fire escape (rare for Fifth Avenue) bisects the façade and partially obscures the wonderful Aesthetic Movement cast iron panels between the third floor windows that give the building’s full address. The architect… Continue reading
The Knickerbocker Building, 79-83 Fifth Avenue
A behemoth clad in limestone, brick, and terra cotta, The Knickerbocker Building at 79-83 Fifth Avenue features ornament derived from highly stylized and over-scaled Renaissance and Viennese Secessionist forms. Designed by Albert S. Gottlieb, it was built for Jacob Rothschild, Jr.; it was widely praised in its time for its up-to-the-minute mix of functions, fireproofing… Continue reading
Just Off Fifth: 7 East 10th Street, The Lockwood de Forest House
One of the great treasures of Greenwich Village, the beautiful Lockwood de Forest House is a unique landmark of the Aesthetic Movement in American architecture. Located at 7 East 10th Street, just off Fifth Avenue, the house is now New York University’s Edgar M. Bronfman Center for Jewish Student Life. Once called “the most Indian house… Continue reading
57 Fifth Avenue
With its simple geometric and abstract ornament, large windows and clear expression of modern construction, 57 Fifth Avenue is a subtle but sophisticated little commercial building, suggesting an understated mix of the Chicago School of architecture and the Viennese Secessionist Movement. Constructed in 1910, 57 Fifth was briefly the headquarters of Frank Harris’ Pearson’s Magazine. … Continue reading