We promised to update you on Philip Johnson's last building, a posthumous condo project at 330 Spring Street at the western edge of SoHo that we first wrote about here. The 12-story 40 unit structure will be marketed as "The Urban Glass House," apparently a reference to Johnson's intention before he died to reinterpret his New Canaan Glass House for a Manhattan setting. Although it seemed stalled at one point, a new partnership stepped in to purchase the project from its original developer and construction is now well under way, with completion expected in spring 2006. The Sunshine Group has been chosen to market the condos. At the future web site for the project (theurbanglasshouse.com) a splash page place holder boldly declares "Modernist luxury has evolved." The page also seems to reveal a kind of speak-to-the-dead collaboration between the ghost of Mr. Johnson and the very-much-living Annabelle Selldorf. Whether the talented Ms. Selldorf has reworked any of Johnson's original scheme or was brought in only to plan the interiors is unknown. Click through after the jump to view the original rendering of the Urban Glass House as once planned by Philip Johnson and Alan Ritchie.


Our best guess is that the design is likely to look substantially the same. The Hudson Square area of SoHo is becoming something of a laboratory of condo cool, with about half a dozen modernist projects either completed or in the works. More updates to come as circumstances warrant...

Care of www.triplemint.com

The Urban Glass House

The Urban Glass House (http://www.urbanglasshouse.com/)
Selldorf Architects (http://www.selldorf.com/screen.html)

Yikes...some things are better left unbuilt.....

This is terrible , I share Brian's sentiments .

It probably wasn't bad for its time. In this time of cutting edge designs, this project just appears very dated. I think that is what you are reacting too...The rendering even looks dated :D

A more current rendering....

It probably wasn't bad for its time. In this time of cutting edge designs, this project just appears very dated. I think that is what you are reacting too...The rendering even looks dated :D
True the rendering definately looks dated but even for its time the idea is a far stretch . This is just a glass box , the glass house was not merely a glass box , how it related to the context and how the exterior was an extension of the interior made the original what it was . Its is almost the same as saying that the Marseille apartments is a high rise Villa Savoye .

I agree that the rendering doesn't help in the least but, the design is somewhat stale.

Well, if God is in the details...then the details better be f*#@king amazing, because the rest looks pretty blah!

I can hear P.J. in his office: "Maybe a box? Yeah, alot of boxes! A whole pile of boxes all lined up in a big cube! This is gonna be great! I'll remove a couple of the smaller boxes from the street corner so it can be distinguished from the service entrance. (...mumbling from the intern architect heard in the background...) Who said that? Of course they'll build it! (...more mumbling...) What? It is not crap! Oh, forget it! Screw all of you! Where are my glasses?"

330 Spring Update
Philip Johnson's Urban Glass House has already risen several stories on SoHo's western edge at 330 Spring Street. More detail about the project has now emerged. Johnson's design has been completed through a collaboration between Alan Ritchie, SLCE Architects, and Annabelle Selldorf. 40 condominium units will range in size from one to four bedrooms. The lobby, common areas, elevator cabs, and unit finishes have been designed by Selldorf drawing on (apparently) a loose inspiration from Johnson's early work. The apartments will feature 10 foot ceilings and open plan stainless steel kitchens by Balthaup. Click through after the jump to view two new interior images.

New Interior Shots-

Interior Shot 2

View Johnson's original design for a 26-story tower on this site:
Wired New York Forum (http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6194)

View Johnson's original design for a 26-story tower on this site:
Wired New York Forum (http://www.wirednewyork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6194)

I prefer the small one. :wondering

And it seems to be the subject of the week:
CURBED (http://www.curbed.com/archives/2005/09/13/ground_breaks_on_philip_johnsons_urban_glass_house .php#more)
POLIS (http://nycenvirons.blogspot.com/2005/09/glass-house-should-throw-stones.html)
ARCHIDOSE (http://archidose.blogspot.com/)

That's Crazy!

and that picture's just plain scary!!