Manhattan, New York, The United States of America

MABU 

This project is an artist studio in the Tribeca West Historic District. Located within a 7-story, 36-unit, prewar co-op building, the creation of this 1,100 SF workspace involved a full gut renovation to an existing third floor apartment and minor alterations to an adjacent unit which were combined into one. The client, a video artist, wanted an open flexible workspace with substantial storage that also provided display areas for her collection of Chinese art, decorative objects, and mementos. The condition of the existing unit was poor and its features non-descript, except for one large south-facing window with a direct view to the World Trade Center. The design strategy balances issues of practicality and visibility in an understated manner. It works with and amplifies the angular geometry of the building’s plan as the framework for a new spatial arrangement with two primary areas organized on either side of an existing structural wall – the art studio and a kitchenette. Two new freestanding spatial ‘anchors,’ a storage partition/display case and a utility shaft, are positioned in each of these spaces to articulate open, interconnected activity zones and structure movement between them. Both feature deep green perforated metal screens designed to be looked at and looked through. In between them is a new passageway integrated into an existing opening within the demising wall and wrapped on all four sides with Baltic Birch plywood, with exposed end grain. The studio is designed as an open layout connecting to the kitchenette. It features a long wall of built-in cabinetry for studio storage and a large freestanding cabinet which acts as a partition between the studio and tearoom. The tearoom is a small informal lounge, an intimate wedge of space surrounded by shelving with a Hitchcockian ‘rear-window’ condition next to it. The kitchenette is designed as a flexible space that doubles as the unit’s entry vestibule with a small galley kitchen. A guest bedroom is located at the rear of the unit and includes an en-suite bathroom. The renovation features custom-designed cabinetry, furniture, and details including perforated radiator grilles, recessed door pulls, and a rolling work desk. The scope of work also included infrastructural upgrades, including a new boiler, electrical, lighting, and full window replacement.