Vessel will have 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, 2,400 steps and 80 landings Credit: Forbes Massie
Rather than just be something to look at, our design undertook the challenge of creating a landmark every inch of which could be climbed and explored – Heatherwick Studio
British designer Thomas Heatherwick has unveiled a climbable public landmark that will be the towering centrepiece of New York City’s Hudson Yards development.
Vessel is a honeycomb-like structure of 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, 2,400 steps and 80 landings. A mile's worth of pathway will rise above a public plaza below.
Conceived as a vast interactive sculpture and a new public landmark, it will stand 150ft (45.7m) tall with a diameter widening from 50ft (15m) at the base to 150ft at its top.
The painted steel frame – with its underside surfaces covered by a polished copper-coloured steel skin – is currently being fabricated in Italy. The project is due for completion towards the end of 2018.
“Rather than just be something to look at, our design undertook the challenge of creating a landmark every inch of which could be climbed and explored,” said Heatherwick Studio in a statement. “Vessel will lift the public up, offering new ways to look at New York, Hudson Yards and each other.”
Stephen Ross, the chairman of Hudson Yards developer Related Companies, has previously said Heatherwick’s tower “will become to New York what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris.” It is expected to cost around US$150m (€133.5m, £114m) to build.
The wider Hudson Yards development is New York’s largest since the Rockefeller Center. The mixed-use real estate development will consist of 16 skyscrapers and a 750,000 sq ft (70,000sq m) retail centre with restaurants, cafes, markets, a cinema and bars. There will also be new houses, schools and 20 acres public space.
Vessel will be located in the site’s five acre Public Square and Gardens, designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects.
Speaking about Vessel, New York mayor Bill de Blasio said: “I’m struck by the notion that this could be a place – yes, for people to be active – but also a place that will cause us to reflect and think.
“There’s something compelling and attractive about it; certainly something that will make it a must-see and a must-walk for all New Yorkers.”
Vessel will be located in Hudson Yards' Public Square and Gardens, designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects
Credit: Forbes Massie
The painted steel frame will be covered by a polished copper-coloured steel skin Credit: Forbes Massie
Heatherwick Studio said 'Vessel will lift the public up, offering new ways to look at New York, Hudson Yards and each other'
Credit: Forbes Massie
PROJECT PROFILE: Pier 55 New York British architect and designer Thomas Heatherwick from Heatherwick Studios, and landscape architecture firm Mathews Nielsen have been chosen to design ‘Pier 55’ – a US$170m (€136m, £109m) floating park on the Hudson River.
Location: New York , United States
Size: 1.1-hectare (2.7 acres)
Budget: US$170m (€136m, £109m)
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Vessel will have 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, 2,400 steps and 80 landings Credit: Forbes Massie
Rather than just be something to look at, our design undertook the challenge of creating a landmark every inch of which could be climbed and explored – Heatherwick Studio
British designer Thomas Heatherwick has unveiled a climbable public landmark that will be the towering centrepiece of New York City’s Hudson Yards development.
Vessel is a honeycomb-like structure of 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, 2,400 steps and 80 landings. A mile's worth of pathway will rise above a public plaza below.
Conceived as a vast interactive sculpture and a new public landmark, it will stand 150ft (45.7m) tall with a diameter widening from 50ft (15m) at the base to 150ft at its top.
The painted steel frame – with its underside surfaces covered by a polished copper-coloured steel skin – is currently being fabricated in Italy. The project is due for completion towards the end of 2018.
“Rather than just be something to look at, our design undertook the challenge of creating a landmark every inch of which could be climbed and explored,” said Heatherwick Studio in a statement. “Vessel will lift the public up, offering new ways to look at New York, Hudson Yards and each other.”
Stephen Ross, the chairman of Hudson Yards developer Related Companies, has previously said Heatherwick’s tower “will become to New York what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris.” It is expected to cost around US$150m (€133.5m, £114m) to build.
The wider Hudson Yards development is New York’s largest since the Rockefeller Center. The mixed-use real estate development will consist of 16 skyscrapers and a 750,000 sq ft (70,000sq m) retail centre with restaurants, cafes, markets, a cinema and bars. There will also be new houses, schools and 20 acres public space.
Vessel will be located in the site’s five acre Public Square and Gardens, designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects.
Speaking about Vessel, New York mayor Bill de Blasio said: “I’m struck by the notion that this could be a place – yes, for people to be active – but also a place that will cause us to reflect and think.
“There’s something compelling and attractive about it; certainly something that will make it a must-see and a must-walk for all New Yorkers.”
Fulham FC secures Heatherwick Studio for stadium project POSTED 27 Apr 2016. BY Matthew Campelli Heatherwick Studio – the architects behind the London 2012 Olympic cauldron – have
been commissioned by Fulham Football Club to design a new stand.
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Expo 2030 Riyadh is being planned as a permanent visitor destination, with organisers
confirming the six-million-square-metre site will become a Global Village after the event closes.
The owner of one of Australia's best-known waterparks has acquired a major competitor,
creating a new attractions business spanning two of the country's largest visitor destinations.
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