Sky high: SHoP reveal American Copper Buildings and adjoining skybridge

The New York skyline is never short of surprises, but a copper-clad, three-storey, 100-foot-long skybridge adjoining two twisting towers is stretching it, even for the city that never sleeps.
But these are just the kind of thrills offered by the American Copper Buildings (née 626 First Avenue), SHoP Architects' new tilting towers, created in collaboration with luxury developer JDS Development Group.
Rising over First Avenue and 36th Street on the eastern edge of Manhattan, the 41- and 48-storey residential towers are designed to have 'over 300 one-of-a-kind layouts with sweeping, enviable views of the Empire State Building, East River and Manhattan skyline'.
The 'dancing towers' – as they are called due to their pose – are nearing completion too, with building well on track to finish in 2017.
Amassing a total of 900,000 sq ft and containing a total of 761 rental residences (none will be for sale), the building complex will contain a mix of everything from studio flats to three bedroom abodes across the two towers – 20 per cent of which is reserved for low-income or 'affordable' housing.
The real showstopper is the skybridge itself: suspended 300 feet above the ground, at the 27th to 29th floors, it is allegedly the highest such structure in the city. Steel trusses form the bridge itself, which contains a wealth of amenities you'd sooner expect of a super luxe hotel.
To begin with, there is a vaulted, two-storey gym complete with rock-climbing wall, a plunge pool and marble hammam, yoga studio, squash court, screening room, juice bar, demo-kitchen, playroom, bar and even an art studio. If that wasn't enough, there's a 75 ft pool too. The lucky residents of the east and west towers immediately above the bridge will also have private terraces to enjoy. One pool is never enough though, which led the architects to include an infinity pool on the 40th floor of the east tower. (The space was freed up when they tucked the mechanical systems of said tower into the skybridge itself.)
As well as a new set of renders illustrating the luxe interiors, there is a new name – American Copper Buildings – which was revealed this week. It takes a cue from the steely exterior cladding of the build, which the architects chose to mirror the iconic Statue of Liberty, with its iconic green patina.
The towers' copper cladding was inspired by the Statue of Liberty. With time, the copper façade will rust into a green patina.
Rising over First Avenue and 36th Street on the eastern edge of Manhattan, the 41- and 48-storey residential towers are designed to have 'over 300 one-of-a-kind layouts with sweeping, enviable views of the Empire State Building, East River and Manhattan skyline'
Joining the towers is a skybridge; suspended 300 feet above the ground, the three-storey, 100-ft-long structure houses a number of amenities, including a bar and lounge (pictured)
Other amenities include a vaulted, two-story gym, complete with a rock-climbing wall, yoga studio, squash court, screening room, juice bar, demo-kitchen, playroom, bar and even an art studio
There's also a 75 ft pool and an infinity pool can be found on the 40th floor of the east tower
The rental residential development is due to be completed in 2017. Pictured: the plunge pool and marble hammam
INFORMATION
Renders courtesty of SHoP Architects
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Wallpaper* checks into Gansevoort Meatpacking, an art-filled hotel that mirrors the district’s glow-up
This sharp, stylish New York hotel is a fixture in its neighbourhood, where boutiques, restaurants and clubs have long since taken over spaces once occupied by slaughterhouses
-
Glenn Martens’ thrilling Maison Margiela debut was a balancing act between past, present and future
The Belgian designer made his debut for the house last night with a collection that looked towards medieval decoration for a new expression of opulence
-
Peel back this Michigan lakeside house’s cool slate exterior to reveal a warm wooden home
In Detroit, Michigan, this lakeside house, a Y-shaped home by Disbrow Iannuzzi Architects, creates a soft balance between darkness and light through its minimalist materiality
-
Peel back this Michigan lakeside house’s cool slate exterior to reveal a warm wooden home
In Detroit, Michigan, this lakeside house, a Y-shaped home by Disbrow Iannuzzi Architects, creates a soft balance between darkness and light through its minimalist materiality
-
Inside the new theatre at Jacob’s Pillow and its ‘magic box’, part of a pioneering complex designed for dance
Jacob’s Pillow welcomes the reborn Doris Duke Theatre by Mecanoo, a new space that has just opened in the beloved Berkshires cultural hub for the summer season
-
A Rancho Mirage home is in tune with its location and its architect-owners’ passions
Architect Steven Harris and his collaborator and husband, designer Lucien Rees Roberts, have built a home in Rancho Mirage, surrounded by some of America’s most iconic midcentury modern works; they invited us on a tour
-
Inside Frank Lloyd Wright’s Laurent House – a project built with accessibility at its heart
The dwelling, which you can visit in Illinois, is a classic example of Wright’s Usonian architecture, and was also built for a client with a disability long before accessibility was widely considered
-
Tour this fire-resilient minimalist weekend retreat in California
A minimalist weekend retreat was designed as a counterpoint to a San Francisco pied-à-terre; Edmonds + Lee Architects’ Amnesia House in Napa Valley is a place for making memories
-
A New Zealand house on a rugged beach exemplifies architect Tom Kundig's approach in rich, yet understated luxury
This coastal home, featured in 'Tom Kundig: Complete Houses', a new book launch in the autumn by Monacelli Press, is a perfect example of its author's approach to understated luxury. We spoke to Tom Kundig, the architect behind it
-
Tour architect Paul Schweikher’s house, a Chicago midcentury masterpiece
Now hidden in the Chicago suburbs, architect Paul Schweikher's former home and studio is an understated midcentury masterpiece; we explore it, revisiting a story from the Wallpaper* archives, first published in April 2009
-
The world of Bart Prince, where architecture is born from the inside out
For the Albuquerque architect Bart Prince, function trumps form, and all building starts from the inside out; we revisit a profile from the Wallpaper* archive, first published in April 2009