NEW YORK|The World Financial Center| 577 ft,645 ft,739 ft,500 ft|40 floors,44 floors,

[SkyscrapersOfNewYork]

World Financial Center New York City

The original plan called for creating a late twentieth-century version of Rockefeller Center, a new community that would be self-sustaining with its own schools, shops and restaurants. It would also provide new housing for those that would soon be working in the new towers, and it would open up a magnificent riverside promenade that would take advantage of the stunning sunsets and bring much-needed nightlife to an area that previously closed down after sundown.
Designed in 1985 by architect Cesar Pelli and completed in 1988, the towers that make up the Center are excellent examples of Post-modernist architecture in that they combine new ideas with traditional forms. The four towers, ranging from 33 to 54 stories, provide eight-million square feet of office, retail and public space on fourteen acres of land in the center of Battery Park City. Four stocky, polished granite-and-glass towers are topped with geometrically shaped crowns, each one identifying their owners: a dome for Merrill Lynch, a solid pyramid for American Express, a cut pyramid (or mastaba) for Dow Jones and Oppenheimer and a solid pyramid for #3 World Financial Center.
The luxurious lobbies feature polychromatic marble and shiny black columns. The soaring Winter Garden (120 feet high) is a glass-enclosed greenhouse pavilion that is comprised of 2,000 panes of glass, sixteen 40-foot tall Washington palm trees and 60,000 square feet of tricolor Italian marble. Free music, dance and theatrical recitals are frequently held here. A glass wall on the west side, which formerly served as a major entryway for the World Trade Center, now offers a sobering view of Ground Zero.
Approximately 35 specialty shops and restaurants overlook an outdoor waterfront plaza with spectacular views of New York’s Hudson River. The guardrail along the marina¹s edge features the words of Walt Whitman and Thomas O’Hara.
Having sustained major damage after the attacks of September 11, the World Financial Center is finally back to full operation.

http://www.onboardnewyorktours.com/n...ancial-center/




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[marvelfannumber1]

Whatever this style is called that exsists in this the old 7 world trade and one penn plaza is i love it! The world financial center made the trade center look good and also looked great by themselves.

[Kanto]

Originally Posted by marvelfannumber1

Whatever this style is called that exsists in this the old 7 world trade and one penn plaza is i love it! The world financial center made the trade center look good and also looked great by themselves.

I 100% agree with you. I am looking forward to see it doing this same job for the new WTC.

[pico44]

Maybe the greatest piece of post-modern architecture in the world. Although Johnson's Chippendale and Lipstick buildings and Graves's Humana building all make a good case as well, there is something about WFC that catches my imagination.

[plinko]

Probably the best 'complimentary' buildings ever built (in terms of skyscrapers). Pelli used alot of real subtleties here. Modern sheen, but a hierarchy from base to top that transitions from heavy granite facing to diaphanous glass prisms at the top, each capped by a defining and yet simple copper crown. Really post-modernism at its pinnacle, and much less gimmicky than Johnson or Graves.

These buildings softened the harshness of the two WTC towers. Sans that backdrop for the last decade, they seem a bit squat, bulky, and out of place. Only time will tell if they still have that same complimentary effect with the new complex.

[Amanita]

Cesar Pelli designed those towers to compliment and soften the WTC. In a way, the two complexes together reminded me a bit of a Japanese flower arrangement, in a way.
I don't know if that will be the case with what's going up now

[photoLith]

Ive always thought these buildings were really ugly while at the same time really cool. Each one by themselves arent that great, but all together they are really nice.

[Perklol]

The whole complex is a mess. I would have preferred if they dropped 1 of the stubby towers for an 80s apartment tower. That would have been visually appealing than the current bland offices.

[Chapelo]

Mr. Pelli with his model for the WFC, September 1982. From New Yorker Magazine.

[jsr]

Originally Posted by Chapelo

Mr. Pelli with his model for the WFC, September 1982. From New Yorker Magazine.

Wow, he looks so young there. 33 years ago. He's close to ninety these days.

I've noticed an interesting trend that quite a few of these big name architects have long lifespans. You'd think that with all the job stress...

[ArtDecoRevival]

Originally Posted by jsr

Wow, he looks so young there. 33 years ago. He's close to ninety these days.

I've noticed an interesting trend that quite a few of these big name architects have long lifespans. You'd think that with all the job stress...

I think some of them hang on because they want to see their projects come to fruition (or other projects they're excited about). Same goes for developers like Silverstein.