Bricks are a material with an intrinsic pattern. They add a layer of articulation that develops through surface and form. The Landmarks Preservation Commission was established in New York to preserve historic buildings after the McKim, Mead & White- designed Penn Station was pulled down. The Commission has jurisdiction over the site of a townhouse that SYSTEMarchitects was commissioned to renovate and enlarge in 2010.
It was important that the building be made from vernacular materials characteristic of the historic neighborhood: brick, steel, glass, and cast iron. The windows are carefully angled to increase the views up and down the street while decreasing the view into the house from the opposing commercial building. This has the effect of turning the brick facade into a continuous twisting surface. The brick acts as a textile, cloaking and corbeling from the cast iron base up to the cornice.
