World's Thinnest Skyscraper
'111 West 57th Street', also known as the Steinway Tower, is a residential tower by SHoP Architects. It sits on the southern edge of Central Park, in an area known as Billionaires’ Row, on the most expensive street in the world. With a total height of 435 meters, Steinway Tower is among the tallest buildings in New York City. On completion, Steinway Tower will hold the title of the world’s most slender skyscraper, with a width-to-height ratio of approximately 1:24.
The tower’s tapering form was inspired by New York’s iconic early-20th century towers. The design aims to bring back the quality, materiality and proportions of historic NYC towers, while taking advantage of the latest technology to push the limits of engineering and fabrication.
The building’s bronze and terracotta façade reference New York’s art deco history. For 111 West 57th Street, blocks of sequentially varying profiles were modeled, extruded, glazed, and then stacked into an involute pattern. Staggering those elements across the facade creates a distinctive moiré that changes dramatically when seen in different lights or from various distances.
Steinway Tower boasts 82 floors. The first five floors will contain shared recreation spaces and high-end retail. The upper 77 will house luxury apartments and there will be only one residence on each floor. The highest apartment is expected to fetch at least $100 million. A glass curtain wall along the North façade will take full advantage of the tower’s sweeping views of Central Park.
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