277 Fifth Avenue, a striking, modern tower designed by internationally-acclaimed architect Rafael Viñoly and developed by Victor Group and Lendlease, has debuted Aurora, a commissioned site-specific light art installation by renowned lighting designer Joel Fitzpatrick. Aurora is a stunning, temporary art installation that transforms the upper levels of the ultra-luxury condominium tower, bringing NoMad’s tallest tower to life with an effervescent public artwork that reveal new aspects of Viñoly’s contemporary architectural design. The two-week installation is on display in honor of NYCxDesign, New York City’s annual celebration of design that attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees and designers from across the globe. It also commemorates the inauguration of the NoMad Design District, Manhattan’s marquee international design destination that hosted a series of NYCxDesign events on May 18.
“The juxtaposition of emulating a natural wonder in response to the ultimate metropolis of New York City has been an incredible experience,” said creative visionary Joel Fitzpatrick. “I hope that viewers can interpret and respond to this work throughout the city and contextualize the monumental scale and proportions of Viñoly’s architecture with a new perspective at night.”
Inspired by the natural light display commonly known as the Aurora Borealis, or “The Northern Lights” which occurs in high-latitude regions around the world, artist Joel Fitzpatrick has emulated the varying color and complexity of this natural phenomenon in an urban context at 277 Fifth Avenue. With the rise of digital technology, “The Northern Lights” has become an iconic image due to its perpetually shifting appearance, and Aurora at 277 Fifth Avenue displays the same temporal color changes for Manhattan during NYCxDesign. No single color can be assigned to the artwork, which appears as a gradient against the skyline during an hourly program in concert with the sparkling spire of the neighboring Empire State Building.
For 277 Fifth Avenue, Fitzpatrick’s selection of light enables the property’s architecture to be experienced in a new way from nearly every Manhattan neighborhood’s perspective. One of the standout features of the property’s design is a quartet of distinguished loggias, sheltered, double-height, open-air spaces for private leisure and entertaining that spiral downward from the top and are seemingly carved out of the building’s corners.
"Aurora transforms the loggia and penthouse residences into a digital canvas of dynamic light that celebrates Rafael Viñoly’s iconic architecture in a new way,” said Melissa Román Burch, executive general manager at Lendlease. “We're excited to celebrate NoMad as a center for design with this one-of-a-kind artwork during NYCxDesign."
“Joel Fitzpatrick’s vision to illuminate the tower came to us at the perfect time. We wanted to highlight this standout project while it is still possible at this point in the construction cycle,” said Ran Korolik, executive vice president of Victor Group. “With the custom façade being fully installed this summer, it was the perfect time to give a nod to the proliferation of design in NoMad.”
277 Fifth 55-stories and features 130 condominium residences which range in size one- to four-bedroom residences and start at $1.9 million. Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group is exclusively leading sales and marketing. Shokai is the preferred equity investor behind the project. Closings are expected to begin later this year (2018).
The public installation will be on display for two weeks from May 17 – 31 from dusk until 2 a.m. and again from 5 a.m. to dawn, and it can be experienced from numerous vantage points across Manhattan.
Check-Out The Timelapse Below:
