When famed designer Thomas Heatherwick and architect Bjarke Ingels envisaged their condo buildings along New York’s High Line—Lantern House and the XI, respectively, face each other across West 18th Street—neither went the traditional route. Instead of a single glassy skyscraper, each sketched out two connected towers: Heatherwick’s duo is distinguished by bulbous bay windows, while Ingels’s buildings twist toward one another. Both are expected to open by the end of this year. But how do these (almost) unique structures—and their rule-breaking designers, who teamed up for Google’s California and London headquarters—compare?
Lantern House
Lantern House |
The XI
Dbox for HFZ Capital Group |
|---|---|
| STARTING PRICE FOR A ONE-BEDDER
$1.63 million |
STARTING PRICE FOR A ONE-BEDDER $2.95 million |
| NUMBER OF UNITS
181 |
NUMBER OF UNITS
236 |
| BUY A PENTHOUSE FOR
$17 million for the priciest aerie. |
BUY A PENTHOUSE FOR
$25 million for a half-floor unit. |
| WHAT’S IN THE NAME?
Its windows are reminiscent of old oil lanterns. |
WHAT’S IN THE NAME?
Erm, it’s on Eleventh Avenue? |
| TALLEST TOWER
22 stories |
TALLEST TOWER 36 stories |
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DÉJÀ VU MUCH…? Heatherwick’s Silo Hotel in Cape Town.
Mark Williams |
DÉJÀ VU MUCH…? Ingels’s Grove at Grand Bay in Miami.
Jesse Kunerth/Adobe |
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HE’S ALSO KNOWN AS The Pied Piper of architecture |
HE’S ALSO KNOWN AS Mr. Big |
|
YOU KNOW HIM FROM Vessel at Hudson Yards, just up the High Line.
Adobe |
YOU KNOW HIM FROM The Audemars Piguet museum in Switzerland.
DENIS BALIBOUSE |
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IS THERE A LUXE HOTEL INCLUDED? Nope. |
IS THERE A LUXE HOTEL INCLUDED? Yes, the Six Senses. |
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FRIENDLY RIVALRY “It was actually my idea originally to collaborate with Bjarke.” |
FRIENDLY RIVALRY “Thomas is focused on the jaw-dropping centerpiece—the ‘wow’ moment.” |
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AMENITY WARS A two-story health center with a swimming
Lantern House |
AMENITY WARS A lounge between the towers with a movie
Dbox for HFZ Capital Group |
|
NEXT BIG THING Little Island, a pier on the Hudson River. |
NEXT BIG THING Woven City, a “city of the future” in Japan. |
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CRITICS LOVE THEM… Paul Goldberger, Pulitzer Prize–winning critic: |
CRITICS LOVE THEM… Aaron Betsky, director of Virginia Tech’s School |
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…AND ALSO HATE THEM Critic and McMansion Hell blogger Kate |
…AND ALSO HATE THEM The Guardian critic Oliver Wainwright: “Most |
