In this exclusive video interview, Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Viera discusses his first building in the US, a luxury condominium tower in New York City.
Speaking to Dezeen in New York, the 86-year-old architect said that he did not imagine he would ever receive such a commission.
"I didn't expect to build in Manhattan," he told Dezeen. "So it was a big surprise and a big experience."
The building, called 611 West 56th Street, is under construction in New York's West Side, near the corner of 11th Avenue and 56th Street.
611 West 56th Street is Álvaro Siza's first US commission
Due to the narrow site, the Portuguese architect has designed the condominium to rise 450 feet (137 metres), which he admits is fairly short in comparison to other high-rises in the city. "I had the chance to work in a lot, an area that was very narrow, so the building ? for New York ? is not very high," he said.
The 37-storey tower comprises two volumes, with a larger block forming the base, and a slender volume rising on top. Siza describes the narrow proportion of this upper structure as "elegant", likening it to the long neck of a giraffe.
The building resembles a giraffe due to its slender upper half according to Siza
The exterior of 611 West 56th Street will be clad with pale limestone slabs so that it contrasts with the darker surrounding structures.
"Since behind my building I had a big black black tower, I thought that to reinforce this ver...