Blank Slate - Design Bureau

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Blank Slate

Sunday, February 16th, 2014

Raw space is a blank canvas for an architect. So this shell of a New York City duplex penthouse—complete with a 1,000-square-foot roof terrace and 50- foot curtain wall overlooking the Hudson River—afforded architect Sally Rigg of Rigg Design ample opportunity for wide strokes of style. 

Central to her design was maximizing the epic views and the idea of contrast, a concept the architect fleshed out with unexpected juxtapositions of materials and pieces. 

“Prior to construction, the space was dominated by a dramatic angled glass and steel wall. To compensate for that severity, we used recycled barn wood, which immediately warms and softens the interior,” Rigg says. “In the upstairs guest bedroom, a bright green lacquer and glass wall contrasts with an oak and slate floor. On the stair wall, we set rusticated limestone, which off sets the highly reflective epoxy floors.” 

While the undefined floor plate offered endless design possibilities, it also meant a lot of additional work as Rigg would be es- sentially starting from scratch. Elevators weren’t equipped to transport construction materials so stone slabs and other materials like bathtubs needed to be craned 140 feet to the building’s rooftop and carried down to the unit—a process that required street closures and careful coordination. 

But even with its headaches, the penthouse project, Rigg says, was a chance to do something different: “The client is thrilled with the transformation.” 

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