Sara Arnold, OCV R.A.
and partner, is the architect behind the master plan, which transformed a manufacturing
building in Tribeca's Landmark District, into three luxury lofts, and a duplex
penthouse. In collaboration with SDG for interiors, the architects created spaces
that are open and opulent with 12 ft. high floating ceilings, exposed brick
and new amenities throughout.
The owners wanted to create spaces that were workable for families as well
as single people: "We wanted features of apartment living, without giving
up the unique qualities of this one-hundred-year-old loft. New construction
doesn't deliver the same look and feel, even when it's marketed as lofts. Here
you get the ceiling heights, exposed mechanical, huge, deep spaces. "
The original brick is exposed and restored to preserve the historic city loft
feel while highly polished details, such as translucent mosaic tiles and glass
doors were added to make the space bright and airy. "The challenge, architecturally,
is to bring as much light as possible into the interior of the loft," says
Sara Arnold. The polish of the space is accented with high-end amenities, such
as stone radiant-heated floors, recessed halogen lighting throughout and opulent
bathrooms with spa features. This modern purism is further realized in the open
plan and the environmentally friendly Poggenpohl kitchens. Guest and master
baths are well appointed with Duravit porcelain fixtures, and Dornbracht fixtures.
Recessed marble baseboard and windowsills act as a perfect compliment to the
slick durable interiors.
Johan Stylander, well known for his interior design work at prestigious Wall
Street law firms, designed the chic interiors. "It was rewarding to collaborate
with a gifted interior designer and to use such lush materials in an understated
way. I think of Johan is a master of restraint," Sara Arnold said of Stylander.
The challenge was to preserve 'historic' aspects, but to overcome the typical
challenges of lofts which can tend to read as long and narrow in the extreme.
The ceiling is the main player in unifying and brightening the whole. "We
put more design time into the ceiling than into the space," Arnold said.
Everything imaginable mechanically had to be hidden behind the white surface,
which appears harmonious, light, and airy. It is a modern day, and much more
modest Boromini tribute. To that end, OCV Architect's Carla Fuquena-Pena and
SDG's Brian Hackathorn spent no small number of hours in the field, working
with the individual trades, air conditioning, electrical, and sprinkler, to
make the elements read as the unified design you see here.
Said Arnold of the magazine editorial; "We are pleased that Stephanie
Pfriender chose to use the loft as the backdrop for her recent edgy fashion
shoot featured in FLAUNT magazine, No. 77. These photos cause me to look at
the space in a new way. As architects we tend to visualize space in the abstract,
flat, and without people. It's interesting to see it from a different point
of view."