Foster redesigns Madison Avenue extension

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Foster + Partners has unveiled its redesigned proposals for an extension above the historic Parke-Bernet Gallery on Madison Avenue, in Manhattan's Upper East Side, New York City.

The new scheme is significantly smaller than Foster's original plans for a 22-storey elliptical tower (pictured below), which was sent back to the drawing board in January last year (AJ online 17.01.07) following criticism from the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC).

Backed by developer and art collector Aby Rosen, the latest design is a 'less visible' bronze-clad block, and is a clear attempt to appease the detractors of the initial plans – branded 'inappropriate for the site' by the LPC.

Rejecting the first scheme, the commission successfully argued that the 22-storey skyscraper would set an unwelcome precedent for the area, which is predominantly low rise, and that the 1950s Parke-Bernet Gallery was never intended as a plinth for a tower above it, unlike Foster's award-winning Hearst Building.