Lever House
The Lever House by Gordon Bunshaft is one, worked with Skidmore, Owings and Merrill ( SOM) designed skyscraper on Park Avenue in New York City. It was built from 1951 to 1952 in the International style, like him, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe took exemplified in the 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments, and is considered one of the most influential examples of skeleton structures of this style. The British drugstore products manufacturer Lever Brothers was the building as a new American headquarters in order. October 2, 1983, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Built in reinforced concrete skeleton construction, 94 m high building has a curtain wall ( english Curtain Wall ) made of aluminum profiles and transparent and green colored glass. Together with the simultaneously built UN headquarters it was the first building in this type of construction in New York. Front of the facade on the short north-western side of the building there is the external staircase with the elevators. On the ground floor there are no offices, it is fully glazed to the outside and is used as an exhibition space. The block between Park Avenue, 54th and 53rd Street is half full by the Lever House.
As part of the shift Lever Brothers administration to Greenwich in Connecticut ended the use by the owners in 1997. 's Parent company, Lever Brothers, Unilever, however, remained with offices in the top four floors of the Lever House. 1998 RFR Holding bought the building and renovated it for 25 million U.S. dollars. This SOM was commissioned to replace the heavily weathered curtain wall, taking account of the monument protection. When completed in 2003 renovation was a sculpture garden by Isamu Noguchi, who was already provided for in the original construction, installed in the lobby. As a new tenant moved in, among others, the aluminum producer Alcoa and several financial companies. The restaurant "Casa Lever " located on the first floor.
Arne Jacobsen took over the building as a model for his work at the former SAS hotel in Copenhagen. From the American Institute of Architects, the building of the Twenty -five Year Award was awarded in 1980.