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    Rockwell Group creates “the cathedral of fried chicken” for New York restaurant

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    Arches of light warmly illuminate this Korean fried chicken restaurant in New York’s Flatiron district, designed by Rockwell Group.

    Coqodaq is the brainchild of restauranteur Simon Kim’s Gracious Hospitality Management, the group behind the Michelin-starred and James Beard-nominated COTE Korean Steakhouse.
    At Cododaq, glass and bronze modules form arches of light over dinersThe new restaurant offers an elevated take on traditional Korean-style fried chicken, encouraging diners to indulge in nuggets topped with caviar and to pair its “bucket” dishes with champagne.
    “Designed by Rockwell Group as ‘the cathedral of fried chicken’, the restaurant design delivers a daring, yet refined dining experience that skillfully integrates Korean and American influences, placing them at the forefront of this enticing culinary adventure,” said the restaurant team.
    The restaurant’s moody material palette and warm lighting set the tone for an elevated take on Korean fried chickenTo create the right atmosphere for this experience, Rockwell Group opted for a dark and moody interior of rich materials and low, warm lighting.

    “Our goal was to capture the essence of this unique concept and innovative approach to fried chicken and translate it into a memorable dining experience,” said founder David Rockwell.
    Plaster wall panels feature a crackled effect akin to fried chicken skinUpon entry, guests are invited to wash their hands in leathered soapstone basins, above which a row of pill-shaped light bands glow within a bronzed mirror that also wraps onto the side walls.
    Past the host stand, an area with four high-top tables offers a space reserved for walk-ins in front of garage-style windows.
    The long bar is topped with black soapstone and fronted with tambour woodThe main dining area is formed by a series of green leather and dark walnut booths on either side of a central walkway.
    A series of illuminated arches soar overhead, formed from rippled glass and bronze modules that resemble bubbling oil in a deep-fat fryer.
    The restaurant’s extensive champagne collection is displayed in glass cases with bubble-like lightingAt the end of this procession, a mirrored wall reflects glowing arches and creates the illusion of doubled space. Meanwhile, plaster wall panels feature a crackled effect, nodding to the crispy skin of the fried chicken.
    “The material palette was driven by a desire to surround diners in an envelope of warmth, creating a joyful place to be at any time,” Rockwell said.
    Rockwell Group creates atmospheric interiors for Perelman Center in New York

    Additional booth seating to one side is followed by the long bar, topped with black soapstone, fronted by tambour wood and backed by a luminous black liquor shelf.
    The restaurant’s extensive champagne collection – which it claims is the largest in America – is displayed inside glass cabinets installed with globe-shaped lights that look like giant bubbles.
    At the front of the restaurant is an area with high-top tables reserved for walk-in diners”Simon and I share the belief that the most important thing about restaurants is how they ritualise coming together for a shared, celebratory experience and Coqodaq provides the perfect template for that,” said Rockwell.
    Since Tony Award-winning designer founded his eponymous firm in New York 40 years ago, the studio has grown to a 250-person operation with additional offices in Los Angeles and Madrid.
    Upon arrival, guests are encouraged to wash their hands in leathered soapstone basinsAmong Rockwell Group’s recent hospitality projects are the Metropolis restaurant and lobby spaces at the Perelman Arts Center (PAC NYC) and Zaytina inside the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
    We’ve featured a few fried chicken restaurants recently, including a 1960s-influenced spot in Los Angeles and a neon-illuminated eatery in Calgary.
    The photography is by Jason Varney.

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      Rockwell Group creates atmospheric interiors for Perelman Center in New York

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      Ribbons of light guide patrons from the lobby to the restaurant inside the Perelman Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center, where the interiors are designed by New York-based Rockwell Group.

      The studio founded by designer David Rockwell recently completed the public spaces that include the Metropolis restaurant and adjoining lounge areas within the cube-shaped building, which local architecture studio Rex wrapped in thin marble panels.
      The lobby of the PAC NYC venue includes a stage for programmed performancesThe volume holds three flexible and interchangeable theatres that can be infinitely customised for different performance styles, artistic expressions and viewing experiences.
      These are accessed via the elevated lobby level, reached by climbing a grand exterior staircase that draws visitors under the building’s cube form and up through its base.
      A bridge behind the building’s translucent marble facade accommodates seatingThis dramatic entry sequence culminates at a lobby lounge and restaurant that form a new 9,120-square-foot (847 square metres) “community space” for Lower Manhattan, according to Rockwell.

      “The restaurant is intentionally woven throughout the public experience,” he told Dezeen. “There is no hard line between the lobby lounge, restaurant, and terrace, with one space melting into the next.”
      The lobby flows into the Metropolis restaurant, located the other side of angled trussesThe designer’s primary aim was to provide “a celebratory, communal atmosphere; connecting guests, whether you’re the first party there for dinner or the last one there post-show”.
      Rockwell’s combined experience in hospitality and performance design – he has won multiple Tony Awards for his Broadway sets – helped him to craft a seamless experience between these connected functions.
      LED lights within wooden ribbons follow pathways and form “nodes” above gathering areas”Creating a magical journey up into PAC NYC and intertwined with the lobby was a thrilling challenge, especially because the lobby and Metropolis will be host to many free performances on the small stage there,” said the designer.
      This stage will feature a varied program of performers who will entertain diners from a carefully placed vantage point, which allows sightlines from all corners of the lobby and restaurant.

      Lounge seating for up to 30 positioned closest to the stage is intentionally low-slung, so as not to obstruct the views for those further away.
      A bridge that runs along the inner side of the translucent stone facade holds additional seating, overlooking the grand entry staircase through huge panes of glass.
      Jewel-toned fabrics and textured surfaces warm the interiorsThe Metropolis restaurant is helmed by Swedish-Ethiopian chef Marcus Samuelsson, and serves an elevated, eclectic menu billed as “a love letter to New York City” to both performancegoers and the general public.
      Beyond the host stand and the diagonal structural trusses that flank it, the layout is split down the middle, with soft seating arranged on either side of the central axis.
      Rockwell Group designed the restaurant and lobby to act as a “communal space” for Lower Manhattan”The furniture is designed for flexibility and comfort, defined by several smaller areas with lots of seating variety, made up of banquettes and loose furniture and organised around a collection of vintage area rugs,” said Rockwell.
      Glowing bands within sapele wood ribbons trace curved shapes across its ceiling, beckoning guests into the space and also highlighting key areas for gathering such as the bar with chandelier-like “nodes” overhead.

      Rex clads “mystery box” World Trade Center performance arts center in translucent marble

      Jewel-toned upholstery pairs with rich walnut panelling for a warm and inviting feel, and the fabrics and other textured surfaces soften the polished concrete flooring.
      A 70-seat outdoor terrace at the back of the building will also offer al fresco dining during the summer months, visible from the interior through a huge glass wall.
      There’s space for 70 al fresco diners on the outdoor terraceThere’s also a speakeasy-like private dining room for intimate gatherings of up to 16.
      PAC NYC is one of the final pieces in the 16-acre World Trade Center redevelopment masterplan, joining skyscrapers by SOM, RSHP, and SANAA, the transit hub and a church by Santiago Calatrava, and a 9/11 Museum by Snøhetta.
      Rockwell aimed to create “a celebratory, communal atmosphere” both inside and outCelebrating its 40th anniversary next year, Rockwell Group has designed interiors for restaurants all over Manhattan, including Zaytinya, Katsuya, Casa Dani and Wayan.
      The firm also worked on The Shed venue at Hudson Yards, which also hosts performances along with exhibitions and other events within a highly flexible space beneath a giant “telescoping” cover.
      The photography is by Adrian Gaut.

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      Ennead Architects and Rockwell Group create “floating” classrooms for Johns Hopkins University

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      New York-based studios Ennead Architects and Rockwell Group have completed the renovation of an academic building for Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC with “floating” classrooms at its core.

      Called the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center, the 435,000-square-foot (40,400 square metre) building will serve as an interdisciplinary educational and event centre for the university and the public.
      Ennead Architects and Rockwell Group have renovated an academic building for Johns Hopkins University. The photo is by Jennifer Hughes.Located at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, the 10-story building was designed to evoke a “democratic society”, with a large central atrium that contains conference and classrooms seemingly suspended in its core.
      A central staircase doubles as seating and sits at the base, while multiple floors span upwards and contain a number of classrooms and event spaces.
      It will serve as both an education and event centre for the university and the public. The photo is by Jennifer Hughes.”The design is focused on multiple gathering spaces that can shrink and grow to accommodate every type of convening, from an intimate policymaker breakfast to a teeming global conference,” said interior architect Rockwell Group.

      “A large floating transparent classroom and treehouse-like, stacked assemblage of glass classrooms and open lounges hang, suspended on either side of the atrium, providing vistas of the Hopkins community at work and evoking the openness of academic inquiry in a democratic society.”
      The team updated both the interior and exterior of the building. The photo is by Jennifer Hughes.Rockwell Group worked with exterior architect Ennead Architects and architect of record SmithGroup to renovate the interior into a “vertical quad”, distributing 38 classrooms, a library, a multimedia studio, 26 study rooms, three floors of conference centre space, workspaces, a banquet hall, a fitness centre and a 375-seat theatre around the building’s central atrium.
      Ennead Architects, then Polshek Partnership, previously built the building in 2008 for the Newseum before undertaking its current transformation for Johns Hopkins University.
      The team opened up the interior to create a “vertical quad”. The photo is by Alan Karchmer.16,888 square feet (1,586 square metres) of outdoor terraces were also added to the exterior.
      “As architects, it is a rare opportunity to revisit an earlier design and reimagine it for an entirely new purpose,” said Ennead Architects design partner Richard Olcott.
      Suspended classrooms hang in the interior of a central atrium. The photo is by Alan Karchmer.”Major interventions include the complete reworking of the vertical circulation to suit the needs of the complex academic program, numerous realigned floors, and structural transfers to accommodate classrooms and a completely reconfigured auditorium.”
      “The new central spaces will create a nexus of activity throughout the day and evening, offering meeting, classroom, lounge and gathering spaces of varying types and scales, and blurring the traditional boundaries between them.”
      A floating unit at the centre of the atrium contains classrooms and workspaces. The photo is by Jennifer Hughes.The exterior was also refinished to reflect the architectural language of the surrounding buildings such as John Russell Pope’s National Gallery of Art and IM Pei’s National Gallery East Building.
      Pink Tennesse marble wraps around a newly installed, central glass curtain wall with horizontal sunscreens trimmed in bronze and copper.

      Triangular glass panels wrap Knight Center at the University of Oregon

      The sunscreens provide protection from heat gain, while Ennead Architects shifted facade elements to bring more daylight to the space.
      Rockwell Group outfitted the interior palette to include a warm mixture of wood walls and panels, terrazzo tile floors, brick and wood floor tiles and accents of an earthy red, blue and grey.
      Warm wood panelling, terrazzo floors, and accents of an earthy red complete the interior. The photo is by Alan Karchmer.”The Hopkins Bloomberg Center is a holistic example of everything our studio is interested in – creating an urban environment within the larger structure, gathering spaces within larger spaces, and a sense of place that is defined in part, by adaptability and use,” said Rockwell Group founder David Rockwell.
      “How people move, interact, and meet is at the core of every inch of the building.”
      Elsewhere, Ennead Architects recently completed a research facility at the University of Oregon, while together, Ennead Architects and Rockwell Group recently created a food distribution centre in Brooklyn.
      The photography is by Jennifer Hughes and Alan Karchmer. 
      Architect: Ennead ArchitectsInterior architect: Rockwell GroupArchitect of record: SmithGroup

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      Five key projects by architect and Dezeen Awards judge David Rockwell

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      New York architect David Rockwell has joined Dezeen Awards 2023 as a judge. Here, he selects five projects that best reflect his studio’s work.

      Architect and designer Rockwell is the founder of US practice Rockwell Group. He aims for his work to “help facilitate storytelling, community-building and memory-making”.
      “The core value I try to bring to all my work is empathy,” Rockwell told Dezeen.”I approach each decision from the perspective of those who will inhabit the spaces.”
      Projects spanning “theatre, hospitality and the public realm”
      “Working in the theatre has been an incredible training ground for strengthening my own capacity for empathy,” said Rockwell.

      “Our work falls into three main categories: theatre, hospitality and the public realm,” he continued. “Rockwell Group has been fortunate to work across a diverse range of project types, from restaurants, hotels, schools and offices to museum installations, Broadway sets and theatres.”
      The New York-based office is currently working alongside architectural firms Ennead Architects and SmithGroup to convert a museum at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC into an academic building for Johns Hopkins University,.
      Rockwell Group is also designing several restaurants in New York City, including collaborations with Ethiopian-born Swedish-American chef Marcus Samuelsson and French restauranteur Daniel Boulud, as well as an outpost for the international Taiwanese restaurant group Din Tai Fung.
      Rockwell among Dezeen Awards 2023 judges
      Dezeen Awards 2023 launched last month in partnership with Bentley Motors. On Tuesday we announced five more Dezeen Awards judges, including interior designers Kelly Behun and Martin Brudnizki and architects Lara Lesmes, Jayden Ali and Rooshad Shroff.
      Submit your entry before the standard entry deadline on Thursday 1 June. Click here for more entry information.
      Read on to find Rockwell’s views on the five projects that best represent the work of his studio.
      Nobu Hotel in Barcelona, SpainNobu
      “Our work with Chef Nobu Matsuhisa started 29 years ago when we designed his now iconic restaurant in Tribeca.
      “Chef Nobu’s innovative cooking, as well as his origins in the Japanese countryside, inspired an irresistible narrative we got to weave into our design.
      “All these years later, we are still reinventing Nobu – as both a restaurant and hotel brand – in cities worldwide. It is, without question, one of the most significant collaborations of my career. ”

      DineOut NYC, New York City, USA
      “We conceived our pro-bono project DineOut NYC at the height of the pandemic. Covid-19 had completely devastated our restaurant industry.
      “In addition to providing over 300 thousand jobs for New Yorkers, I have always had a strong personal attachment to this sector.
      “Designed in collaboration with the NYC Hospitality Alliance, DineOut is an adaptable, modular outdoor dining system. The project helped end our era of isolation by bringing people together again and getting restaurants back on their feet.
      “Design is most meaningful to me when it fosters community and I feel like we made a real impact doing just that with DineOut NYC.”
      Read more about DineOut NYC ›
      Photo by Paul WarcholHayes Theater and Take Me Out, New York City, USA
      “In 2018 we renovated the 100-year-old Hayes Theater, Broadway’s most intimate venue with only 600 seats.
      “In addition to instilling the historic space with a modern, approachable design vocabulary, we also needed to accommodate the staggering technical demands of modern productions.
      “Last year we had the chance to put our work to the test when we designed the sets for the revival of Take Me Out at the Hayes. Had the theatre been unable to meet our technical needs, I’d have had no one to blame but myself. Thankfully, I was a very satisfied customer.”

      NeueHouse Madison Square, New York City, USA
      “When it opened 10 years ago, NeueHouse Madison Square was a groundbreaking workspace collective that helped usher in a new typology in which art, life, culture, food, and work converge seamlessly.
      “This kind of convergence has taken on profound new meaning in our late-stage pandemic era, in which people are craving bespoke, communal experiences.”
      Read more about NeueHouse Madison Square ›

      TED Theater
      “Our portable TED Theater [for nonprofit foundation TED Talks] is approaching its 10th anniversary this year and it remains a great experiment in the power of ephemeral, shared experiences.
      “The attention to detail recalls permanent works of architecture but its flexibility allows it to adapt and evolve as TED does.”
      All images courtesy of Rockwell Group unless stated otherwise.
      Dezeen Awards 2023
      Dezeen Awards celebrates the world’s best architecture, interiors and design. Now in its sixth year, it has become the ultimate accolade for architects and designers across the globe. The annual awards are in partnership with Bentley Motors, as part of a wider collaboration that will see the brand work with Dezeen to support and inspire the next generation of design talent. More

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      Zaytinya NYC restaurant by Rockwell Group “transports” diners to the Mediterranean

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      Blue glass discs, hand-painted linen pendants and ombre curtains were combined by design studio Rockwell Group to evoke the Mediterranean coast at this restaurant in New York City.

      Zaytinya opened in July 2022 inside the new Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Manhattan’s NoMad district, housed within a tower designed by Rafael Viñoly.
      Zaytinya’s interior features a screen of two-toned blue discs behind the barLocated on the ground floor, the all-day restaurant occupies a 3,000-square-foot (280-square-metre) wedge at the corner of the hotel, facing onto 28th Street and Broadway.
      The interiors by New York-based Rockwell Group were designed to echo the menu created by chef José Andrés, which combines mezze-style dishes influenced by Turkish, Greek, Lebanese and Italian cuisines.
      The restaurant benefits from high ceilings and full-height glazingThis Eastern Mediterranean flavour is echoed across the light and neutral space, which benefits from high ceilings and full-height glass along two walls.

      Entering from Broadway, diners are greeted by a custom mural painted in blues that recalls vistas of the Aegean sea.
      The interior has a neutral palette injected with hints of blueThe same cobalt colour can be found on leather banquette seats and the patterned fabrics used for their backs, as well as in the ombre linen curtains that gently blend to white from the bottom upward.
      “Distinctive pops of blue are injected throughout for a playful nod to the pristine waters of the Mediterranean Islands,” said Rockwell Group.
      Arched openings and tambour walls allude to ancient Greek and Roman architectureBehind the bar is a backlit screen comprising two-toned blue glass discs based on the Greek “evil eye” talisman, housed within a frame that curves towards the ceiling.
      Blue Lavastone forms the bar counter, while the surrounding floor tiles feature an abstract motif of olives and leaves.
      Other splashes of blue include leather banquette seat and ombre curtainsThe remainder of the flooring is wood, laid in chevron patterns in rows divided by lines of blue tiles that follow beams installed across the ceiling.
      Curved and arched elements were introduced to subtly divide the dining areas, and as a nod to ancient architecture.

      Rockwell Group models Casa Dani restaurant in New York on Andalusian patios

      Sections of the walls feature tambour details, also alluding to the fluting of Greek and Roman columns, and a neutral plaster effect is applied to others.
      “Soft curves and a variety of textures transport guests to a modern abstraction of the coast,” the studio said.
      Booth seating runs along a wall of bronze-toned mirrorsPendant lamps in a variety of shapes and sizes are illustrated with scenes drawn by Rockwell Group’s graphics team, which were hand-painted onto the linen shades by The Alpha Workshops – a non-profit dedicated to arts education based nearby.
      “The line drawings celebrate Mediterranean culture, its harvests and ancient arts,” said Rockwell Group.
      Linen lampshades were hand-painted by arts non-profit The Alpha WorkshopsZaytinya is the latest of several restaurant interiors completed by the firm, founded by architect David Rockwell, in New York City.
      Earlier this year, the studio’s Spanish-influenced Casa Dani opened in the Citizens food hall at Manhattan West, closely followed by sushi spot Katsuya in the same development.
      The photography is by Jason Varney.

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      Rockwell Group takes maximalist approach to Japanese design at Katsuya NYC restaurant

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      Elements of traditional Japanese architecture and design are combined and given a contemporary spin by New York studio Rockwell Group at this sushi restaurant in Manhattan.

      Katsuya is the latest restaurant of its name by chef Katsuya Uechi, following locations in Los Angeles, Miami and the Bahamas all serving sushi with a Californian twist.
      Katsuya serves Californian-influenced Japanese cuisine by chef Katsuya Uechi. This and top photos by Nikolas KoenigFor its interior, Rockwell Group looked to a variety of Japanese aesthetic traditions, and blended them together to create a theatrical experience.
      “The interior dining rooms take a maximalist approach to Japanese aesthetics, an entertaining departure from the contemporary minimalist vogue,” said the team.
      A long red-lacquered communal table occupies the centre of the dining room. Photo by Nikolas KoenigThe restaurant totals 6,890 square feet (640 square metres) and seats up to 305 diners. Guests enter past the sushi bar and lounge, which is set up for casual diners to enjoy light bites in view of the kitchen.

      In the main dining area, the space is divided into three sections by a pair arched openings and a series of translucent glass screens subtly printed with images of wagasa – Japanese umbrellas.
      Translucent screens divide up the hall-like spaceThe archways, shaped to reference torii and pagoda architecture, are trimmed with red lacquer and inlaid with square wooden tiles.
      Screens are suspended from a black powder-coated metal framework, reminiscent of kumiki wood joinery.
      Secluded banquettes are positioned towards the back. Photo by Emily AndrewsDominated by red, the central space has a long communal table, plus several two-tops and a trio of secluded banquettes towards the back.
      Small to medium-sized parties are accommodated in the section to the right, where the red tones are swapped for warm creams and the wagasa patterns appear again on the wallpaper.
      Several traditional Japanese wagara motifs decorate the wallsMore banquette niches are framed by curved ceilings, and decorated with other traditional wagara motifs and imagery of performers with fans.
      The final indoor dining area includes a variety of table sizes, as well as a robata grill – a specialty that the chef is “renowned for pioneering in the West” according to the team.
      A private dining room seats 10. Photo by Nikolas KoenigConcentric pendant lights by Allied Maker spotlight individual tables and booths throughout the restaurant.
      Meanwhile, the red-lacquered communal table is “illuminated by a custom chandelier with a lazily undulating form that appears like waves rendered in ink”.

      Rockwell Group models Casa Dani restaurant in New York on Andalusian patios

      A private dining room at the end of the hall-like restaurant features red-leather-backed chairs around a circular wooden table, which seats 10.
      In the warmer months, a terrace influenced by autumnal Japanese gardens will provide space for 98 guests outdoors.
      Screens are subtly printed with images of wagasa – Japanese umbrellasKatsuya opened in March 2022 as one of two full-service restaurants inside the Citizens food hall, located within the Manhattan West development between Hudson Yards and Penn Station.
      Rockwell Group was also responsible for the interior design of Citizens, as well as the other fine-dining option Casa Dani, which serves Andalusian cuisine in a setting to match.
      Allied Maker’s Concentric pendant lights are hung throughout the restaurantThe firm was founded by architect and designer David Rockwell in 1984, and is best known for hospitality projects, and production design for theatre and events.
      Its studios have recently collaborated with fellow designers Joyce Wang on the first Equinox Hotel, Yabu Pushelberg for the Moxy Chelsea hotel and Diller Scofidio + Renfro to build 15 Hudson Yards and The Shed – all in New York City.
      The photography is courtesy of Katsuya, unless stated otherwise.

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      Rockwell Group models Casa Dani restaurant in New York on Andalusian patios

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      Olive trees and terracotta tiles create the impression of dining al fresco inside this New York City restaurant, designed by local firm Rockwell Group to resemble a traditional Spanish courtyard.

      The interior of Casa Dani, much like its menu, was conceived to celebrate the heritage of head chef Dani Garcia, who hails from the region of Andalusia on the southernmost tip of Spain.
      Terracotta tiles cover the walls and floors of Casa DaniThe restaurant is one of two high-end eateries found in the Citizens food hall in Manhattan West, which was designed by Rockwell Group and includes a number of bars and fast-food joints.
      Guests enter Casa Dani via a cosy lounge area with walnut parquet flooring, similar to what can be found in a typical Spanish villa.
      The restaurant is accessed via a cosy loungeOne side of the room is dominated by a drinks bar with a countertop crafted from deep-green marble and a base clad in slender tiles of the same hue.

      The other side of the room is panelled in stainless steel sheets, behind which lies the restaurant’s 30-foot-long kitchen.
      A band of glass running through the middle of the panels provides visitors with a direct view of the culinary theatrics that go into the preparation of each dish.
      Lantern-style lights hang above the tablesGuests must walk down a staircase with a leather-wrapped bannister to reach the vast dining room, where both the walls and floors are inlaid with terracotta tiles.
      Paired with hanging plants, lantern-style lights and a smattering of olive trees, this creates the impression of being in one of the central open-air patios found in traditional Andalusian houses.

      David Rockwell and Joyce Wang team up for first Equinox Hotel in New York

      Billowing lace curtains separate the banks of leather-upholstered seating, adding to the airy, al fresco feel.
      At the rear of the room, a towering fireplace is clad in glazed emerald-green tiles. Its rippling form is meant to echo the restaurant’s ceiling, which is covered in a sequence of convex panels.
      A huge fireplace sits towards the rear of the dining roomCasa Dani joins a number of hospitality projects that Rockwell Group has completed across New York City.
      Among them is Wayan, an Indonesian restaurant filled with an abundance of tropical plants, and the Moxy Chelsea hotel, which houses a mix of zany bars, eateries and space-saving guest suites.
      The photography is by Nikolas Koenig.

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      Rockwell Group completes luxury residents-only leisure club for New York's Waterline Square

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      A sinuous wooden walkway connects different amenities in this private leisure club that architecture and design firm Rockwell Group has created for residents of New York’s Waterline Square development.The Waterline Club by Rockwell Group links together the trio of skyscrapers that make up Waterline Square, a five-acre residential development located on Manhattan’s Upper West Side between West 59th and 61st streets.
      Each of the three buildings was designed by a different architect – Rafael Viñoly, Richard Meier and KPF – and together accommodates 263 luxury apartments.

      An elevated wooden walkway crosses over Nexus, the club’s central gathering spot
      Residents now have exclusive access to 77,000 square feet (7,153 square metres) of leisure amenities available in The Waterline Club, which occupies three subterranean levels beneath the development.

      When devising the interiors, Rockwell Group made sure to make room for activities that “appeal to both left and right-brain thinking”.

      Residents can use The Waterline Club’s fitness centre
      “Our research led to a major observation: New Yorkers have diverse, dynamic interests,” the firm explained.
      “Rather than offer only the typical athletic facilities, we wanted to appeal to New Yorkers’ balanced approach to life, which includes art, music, community, and play,” it continued.
      “We grouped active amenities together, and social and cultural amenities together, establishing a micro-community and an oasis within the city.”

      The club also includes a basketball court
      The central hub of the club is a vast travertine-lined room, dubbed Nexus, which is located down on the third, lowest level. Dotted with an array of plush leather sofas and sculptural armchairs, the room has sightlines through to activity rooms at this level like the gym and tennis court.

      David Rockwell and Joyce Wang team up for first Equinox Hotel in New York

      At this level there’s also a 30-foot-tall (nine-metre-tall) rock climbing wall, a half-pipe skate park, a golf simulation room, a music recording studio and an indoor greenhouse where residents can do gardening.

      Musical residents can make use of the club’s recording studio
      Winding up and across the Nexus is a sinuous wooden bridge that connects visitors to amenities on the club’s upper floors.
      Rockwell Group, which describes the structure as a “circulation ribbon”, took cues from other notable pedestrian paths in New York such as the spiralling walkway inside the Guggenheim Museum and the looping running track that goes around Central Park’s reservoir.
      “The bridge inspires guests to seek out new adventures,” added the firm. “It dips down in the centre, which gives the illusion of tension or stretching and also evokes speed and movement.”

      There’s additionally a series of playrooms for residents’ children
      Among the selection of amenities on the club’s second floor are children’s playrooms, a games arcade, a pets area and a variety of fitness spaces including a basketball court, kickboxing studio and mini athletics field which is fit-out with astroturf.
      This is followed by a sauna, spa treatment rooms and two swimming pools – one of which is Olympic-sized – up on the club’s first floor.

      One of the two swimming pools which can be found on the club’s first floor
      The Waterline Club is a short distance from the high-end hotel that Rockwell Group and Joyce Wang Studio designed for fitness brand Equinox.
      Opened to the public at the end of the last year, the hotel includes 212 guest rooms, a state-of-the-art gym and a rooftop pool that directly overlooks Thomas Heatherwick’s Vessel project.
      Photography is by Evan Joseph, excluding top image by Scott Frances.

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