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Herzog & de Meuron<\/strong><\/a> restores one of New York\u2019s<\/strong><\/a> iconic examples<\/strong><\/a> of urban Brutalism<\/strong><\/a>, the Breuer Building, set to open to the public in late 2025 as the new global headquarters of Sotheby\u2019s, marking the latest chapter in the life of a structure that has continually adapted to house some of the city\u2019s<\/strong><\/a> most significant art collections.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The restoration<\/strong><\/a>, in collaboration with local firm Platt Byard Dovell White Architects (PBDW), embraces a \u2018light-touch\u2019 approach, retaining Breuer\u2019s<\/strong> <\/a>original materials and spatial intentions while updating infrastructure to improve accessibility, curatorial flexibility, and the visitor experience. The character-defining features of the building remain intact, including bush-hammered concrete<\/strong><\/a> walls, coffered ceilings, mahogany finishes, and bluestone floors. Yet new interventions, such as a discreetly inserted elevator and revamped lighting systems, prepare the building for diverse programming.\u00a0<\/p>\n Herzog & de Meuron restores the Breuer Building | images courtesy of Herzog & de Meuron<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Originally completed in 1966 by Bauhaus-trained architect Marcel Breuer for the Whitney Museum of American Art, the inverted ziggurat form, with its recessed windows and robust concrete facade, was designed to provoke. Since its opening, the building has served as a home for art, temporarily housing the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Frick Collection after the Whitney\u2019s departure in 2014. Now, nearly 60 years later, Sotheby\u2019s takes over as steward of the building\u2019s next phase, preserving its cultural role while offering free public access for the first time in its history.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u03a4he project embraces the contradictions of the building, retaining the severe materiality of the lobby, including bronze, concrete, and wood finishes, but now integrates vitrines and display counters in dialogue with Breuer\u2019s original benches. On the gallery floors, the design team<\/strong><\/a> at Herzog & de Meuron reinterprets the irregular window openings as curatorial assets, using them to organize the space and reintroduce a connection with the street. Formerly dim interiors are brightened through layered lighting strategies that allow the building to support new media and a wider range of exhibitions.<\/p>\n retaining the severe materiality of the lobby<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n According to Jacques Herzog, the firm sees this project as part of a long-standing practice of working with existing buildings. \u2018We have always admired the Breuer Building,\u2019<\/em> he notes, describing it as<\/strong> \u2018an architectural icon of postwar modernism.\u2019<\/em> Like their earlier work on the Park Avenue Armory, the design team approaches this intervention with a sense of excitement and responsibility, aiming to restore lost spatial clarity and make the building relevant for a new audience and function.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n As the city continues to grow and build in all directions, the transformation of the Breuer Building offers an approach that values the past while shaping the future. Once a museum and soon to be an auction house, the building is shifting from one part of the art world to another, remaining a striking presence.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n formerly dim interiors are brightened through layered lighting strategies<\/p>\n vitrines and display counters dialogue with Breuer\u2019s original benches<\/p>\n the team reinterprets the irregular window openings as curatorial assets<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n project info:<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n name:<\/strong> Sotheby\u2019s Global Headquarters<\/p>\n building:<\/strong> The Breuer Building (originally Whitney Museum of American Art)<\/p>\n original architect:<\/strong> Marcel Breuer (1966)<\/p>\n renovation architect: <\/strong>Herzon & de Meuron<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0@HerzogdeMeuron<\/a><\/p>\n executive architect & preservation:<\/strong> Platt Byard Dovell White Architects (PBDW)<\/a> | @pbdwarchitects<\/a><\/p>\n location:<\/strong> 945 Madison Avenue, New York, NY, USA<\/p>\n site area:<\/strong> 1,200 square meters (12,916 sqft)<\/p>\n gross floor area (GFA):<\/strong> 7,268 square meters (78,232 sqft)<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n client:<\/strong> Sotheby\u2019s<\/a> | @sothebys<\/a><\/p>\n design team:<\/strong> Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron, Wim Walschap (Partner in Charge), Philip Schmerbeck (Associate, Project Director), Jackie Bae (Associate, Project Manager), Bethany Herrmann (Project Designer), Farhad Ahmad, Marija Brdarski, Javier de C\u00e1rdenas Canomanuel, Sebastian Frowein, Nathan Mehl, Melodie Sanchez<\/p>\n structural engineering:<\/strong> Silman Structural Solution \/ TYLin<\/p>\n MEPFP engineering:<\/strong> AMA Group USA<\/p>\n lighting design:<\/strong> Tillotson Design Associates<\/p>\n AV & low voltage consulting:<\/strong> TMT Technology<\/p>\n acoustic consulting:<\/strong> Eligator Acoustics Associates<\/p>\n geotechnical consulting:<\/strong> Langan Engineering and Environmental Services<\/p>\n vertical transportation:<\/strong> DTM Inc.<\/p>\n life safety:<\/strong> Homes Keogh Associates<\/p>\n code consulting:<\/strong> Gillman Consulting Inc.<\/p>\n waterproofing & special inspections:<\/strong> Socotec Engineering, Inc.<\/p>\n contractor:<\/strong> J.T. Magen<\/p>\n The post herzog & de meuron to revive marcel breuer\u2019s NYC icon as sotheby\u2019s global headquarters<\/a> appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Herzog & de Meuron to Turn Breuer Building into SothebY\u2019s HQ \u00a0 Herzog & de Meuron restores one of New York\u2019s iconic examples of urban Brutalism, the Breuer Building, set to open to the public … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[142],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nA New Chapter for new york\u2019s Brutalist Icon<\/h2>\n
a shift from museum to auction house<\/h2>\n