Lever House, Glass curtain wall skyscraper on Park Avenue, Manhattan, US
Lever House is a glass and steel skyscraper on Park Avenue in Manhattan, featuring a slender tower that rises from a horizontal base. The facade spans 21 floors and uses glass and stainless steel materials, creating a clean, modern look that contrasts sharply with surrounding buildings.
This building was completed in 1952 as headquarters for the Lever Brothers soap company and became the second glass curtain wall skyscraper in New York City. It marked a turning point in how the city's skyline would develop and inspired similar designs elsewhere.
The ground-floor plaza displays contemporary art installations and sculptures that invite visitors to linger and explore. Marble benches designed by Isamu Noguchi shape the character of this public space and reflect how the building integrates art into everyday urban life.
The building and its public plaza are easily accessible on foot, located between East 53rd and 54th Streets on Park Avenue. The ground-level plaza is open to the public and offers a good spot to view the building's design and contemporary art installations up close.
The owners close the public plaza for one day each year to preserve their property rights and prevent the space from becoming city property. This unusual legal practice in Manhattan shows how property ownership and public access are carefully balanced in dense urban areas.
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