Gem of the Diamond District

Midtown is hardly the loveliest part of Manhattan, and few parts of Midtown are quite as unlovely as the stretch of 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues. This corner of creation is known worldwide as the Diamond District and, with the possible exception of the city of Antwerp in Belgium, it’s home to the biggest diamond emporium in the world.

Into this mix now came the International Gem Tower, a 34-story colossus designed by Skidmore Owings and Merrill and developed by Extell Development Company. The tower was erected within the context of the “47th Street Business Improvement District” city programme. 20 floors of condominiums is a rare type of tailored architecture specifically for the diamond, gem and jewelry trade. The building was completed in summer 2013.

Just about the biggest structure on the street, it brings a blast of contemporaneity to this tired and superannuated part of the city. The form is dully conventional, but the jazzy surface treatment achieved the distinction that is promised in the renderings.

Aesthetically speaking, the facade of the IGT is like a monochromatic kaleidoscope. Different patterns become visually prominent depending on the light and the viewing angle. Sometimes, the building appears festooned with diamonds. At other vantage points, the diamonds aren’t visible and instead, facets at different levels link to form step-like patterns that zigzag down the building. Depending on the angle, these zigzag patterns sometimes appear to go from right-to-left, and sometimes appear to go from left-to-right. Architecturally, the IGT’s claim to fame is skin deep: Architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill call it “crystalline curtain wall with embedded steel medallions.” The reflective surfaces change appearance as the sun moves – especially if viewed through polarized lenses – because metal and glass reflect light differently.

The International Gem Tower (IGT) may be the only building in New York with a name that alludes to both facade and function. Its exterior of interlocking facets connotes the precious stones that will be bought and sold inside. The architects appear to have followed a modified modernist dictum “facade follows function,” and the result is generally satisfying, both for symbolic reasons and as an aesthetic object. Symbolically speaking, the design of the IGT is strongly contextual, as it signifies its location in the Diamond District, the site of much of the wholesale diamond business in the United States.

Full content of this issue you can read here

The full version of the article can be read in our printed issue, also you can subscribe to the web-version of the magazine

Materials provided by Extell Development Company