Architect: Philip Johnson, John Burgee
Year(s) of construction: 1986
Height: 143 m
Floors: 34
Location: New York, New York, United States
Its official name is 53rd at Third, but is popularly known as the Lipstick Building (the lipstick). The elegant elliptical shape of the building is different from its surroundings.
This is the second post-modern contribution of Philip Johnson to the Manhattan skyline, after the AT & T building with its unusual pediment, built two years earlier.
Considered by some to be one of the ugliest buildings in Manhattan, it has held a special place in my heart since first seeing it with my design students on an architectural field trip, post construction. We were all excited to see a building that resembles a tube of lipstick. It’s an unusual reddish/purplish color, like a deep red lipstick,1986ness (it’s made of enameled Imperial granite and steel). It stands on columns (not visible from this photo, but columns can be seen in the first image above), which are two stories high and separate the street from the nine-meter high lobby, a lobby almost as tall as a two-story building. Today, I find it hilarious, amazing and set apart from the square 1960’s glass boxes. It definitely connects to the nostalgia of the 1980s Johnson buildings in New York.
Lipstick Building fun facts:
- The building was designed by John Burgee/Philip Johnson Architects in 1986.
- It is 453 foot (138 meters) tall in four oval cylinders placed one on the other, from highest to lowest, with 34 floors, creating a building that is tilted away from the crowded third avenue.
- Bernie Madoff’s offices were there – his investment company leased the 17th through 19th floors.
- New York rates it as one of the eight worst buildings to have blighted our skyline. (“One of Phillip Johnson’s (many) failures”)
- The elliptical shape makes no difference between offices located around the perimeter where top executives usually have the corner office. Here, there are no corners.
- The Ramones second single (1976) is about the intersection of 53rd & 3rd being a notorious spot for male prostitutes to hustle. Dee Dee wrote it and sings the bridge. The area was a section of what was known as “the Loop,” which also boasted gay bars such as Rounds and Red. In 1994, a crackdown by police with heavy support from the neighborhood saw an end to the area’s nighttime activities, and despite protests by gay advocate groups, many arrests were made and the bars were shuttered.
53 street & 3 avenue
The exact address is 885 Third Avenue, New York City, the streets between 53rd and 54th, only two blocks from the famous PJ Clarke’s on 55th street.
The company that owned the building filed for bankruptcy in 2010.
What do you think of a building that resembles a tube of lipstick–a red one at that?
Kind of reminds me of the football buildings in Hartford. Channel 3 used to be housed in one of them. Very neat, Gail!
Personally, I’m fascinated by the Gridiron building. I hope to see it with my own eyes one of these years.
Hey Casey, good to see you. Thanks. I haven’t seen those buildings in Hartford. Will have to check it out. Thanks for the comment about the Flatiron building, that’s what you meant, right? New York has some fascinating architecture. The place that has out-of-sight architecture is Amsterdam.
Nice to see something different. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Lorraine
Yup Lorraine, a giant stick of lipstick right in the middle of our design district. You have seen it many times, I am sure. Thanks for visiting.
I’m loving the history lesson, Gail. I always find some new facts about our hometown in your articles.
Marian, thanks. Always good to hear your hi and encouragement.
I will check the Lipstick out next time I am in the city. 🙂
As always, thanks for bringing the world to me!
Katy, thanks. Yup, it is a funny name for a giant work of architecture, isn’t it? But it is apt. The first time I saw it, I agreed with the title, named by the nameless in New York. Especially the color.
I like it. I like the building in San Francisco that has the legs sticking out of it too, but my favorite building is the one in Paris that has all the plumbing, etc. on the outside.
Gerri, thanks for visiting. The Centre Pompidou is amazing. I have only seen it virtually, haven’t been to Paris in too many years, but I had to teach about the structure. Been to San Francisco often, but I never did visit the Piedmont Boutique on Haight Ashbury where the legs are, but it sure is fun to see, even in pictures.