Archinect - News

The Vessel to reopen with improved safety measures

2024-04-15T11:44:00-04:00

The Vessel has announced it will again be open to visitors in New York City later this year after upgraded anti-suicide safety measures are installed in response to a spate of tragedies that have befallen its existence since being inaugurated in March of 2019. The attraction has been closed since 2021 and will reopen with its uppermost level kept inaccessible to the public.

The New York Times reported a representative from Related Companies, which manages the Thomas Heatherwick-designed property, as saying a “floor-to-ceiling steel mesh” barrier would be installed. It will replace existing barriers that were only waste-high and not "cut-proof," as the new fencing is understood to be made.

"While we think it took Related four lives too many to make these physical adjustments, these are the changes we requested, which will allow for prioritizing the safety of everyone who visits the Vessel," Manhattan Communit...

The Vessel at Hudson Yards is reopening after a string of suicides

2021-05-27T21:22:00-04:00

Hudson Yards is reopening The Vessel this week with a renewed focus on suicide prevention following a rash of incidents last year.

The Vessel was closed in January after three people took their lives inside the 150-foot sculpture over a period of 15 months.

Harm-reduction trainings have been added along with a number of other security precautions including a ban on solo entry, signs promoting suicide prevention, and added staff, which developer Related Companies says will be funded by a new $10 ticket fee.

Previously on Archinect: Hudson Yards Vessel closed following another suicide

Related Companies did not offer to raise the waist-high barriers that line the walkway inside of Thomas Heatherwick’s centerpiece sculpture. The move would have mirrored similar prevention measures taken recently at NYU and the George Washington bridge with some success, according to the New York Times.

“I understand that the Vessel is seen as a work of art and architecture, and there’s a certain aestheti...

Hudson Yards Vessel closed following another suicide

2021-01-13T13:04:00-05:00

The Vessel, the spiraling staircase at Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s Far West Side, was closed to visitors on Tuesday, a day after a 21-year-old man jumped to his death in the third suicide in less than a year. It was unclear when the 150-foot structure, the vast development’s centerpiece, would reopen to the public.

According to the NYT, the Vessel sculpture at Hudson Yards, which opened in March 2019, will remain closed "until further notice."

19-year-old jumps to his death from the Vessel in Hudson Yards

2020-02-03T00:27:00-05:00

Police officers on the scene Saturday night asked visitors climbing on the 154 interconnecting staircases to leave the structure. It closed 30 minutes before its usual 7 p.m. shutdown. On Sunday, the site reopened to the public.

Hudson Yards now has its own video game starring comedian Conner O'Malley

2020-01-30T08:41:00-05:00

Hudson Yards has received its share of mockery. Be it Archinect's April Fools' day joke, Vessel's Shawarma like appearance or the Luxury Real Estate Dildo Experience, there has been a fair share of criticism and poking fun of the new development.

Well now, there is a Hudson Yards "video game," and it stars comedian Conner O'Malley. Check it out below!

The Vessel will become accessible with an ADA-compliant platform and lift

2019-12-23T13:54:00-05:00

Representatives of the United States Attorney's office for the Southern District of New York and the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division announced today that Related Companies and ERY Vessel LLC have agreed to install a new accessibility platform at the Vessel in Hudson Yards as part of a legal agreement aimed at bringing American with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance to the eight-story outdoor sculpture.

The agreement dictates that Related and ERY will design, construct, install, and operate a "one of a kind platform lift mechanism on the upper levels of the Heatherwick Studio-designed Vessel ... to increase the Vessel’s accessibility for individuals with disabilities," according to a United States Justice Department announcement. The platform will ensure that people with disabilities can move around the upper level perimeter of the Vessel in order to enjoy the Vessel's 360-degree views over Hudson Yards, the Hudson River, and New Jersey.

According to the m...

Sex toy architecture? "XXX-HY: A Luxury Real Estate Dildo Experience"

2019-10-04T11:45:00-04:00

Architecture practice Wolfgang & Hite has designed architectural sex toys reimagine each of the new buildings at the Hudson Yards. “There’s a lot to love in NYC’s recent building boom, but the city and developers have been jerking each other off for decades, so naturally we wanted to join in the fun… Masturbation is a great metaphor for the latest wave of development in New York City," writes the group on their website.

The collection has been named XXX-HY: A Luxury Real Estate Dildo Experience. Each piece has been scaled to 1"= 100' and includes Heatherwick Studio's Vessel as an "amateur buttplug," DSR's Shed as a clitoral stimulator, and KPF's "gargantuan roof deck tower as a magnum fisting dildo - recommended for those without a fear of heights." Also in the bunch is SOM's "super-slender" 25 Hudson Yards.

"Sex does the body good. After the fiery criticisms of Hudson Yards this year, we thought city officials might need a healthy outlet for working through some of that guilt," wr...

From The Vessel to gallery accessibility, the art world continues to reinforce ableism

2019-08-07T16:14:00-04:00

In 2019, inclusive spaces that are comprised of voices from the neurodiverse and disabled community are still extremely rare. Despite the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 29 years ago, neurodiverse and disabled communities continue to face collective discrimination from failures to accommodate in access, transportation, employment, education, and many other arenas. Unfortunately, the art world is no exception.

Emily Sara, a disabled, interdisciplinary artist and designer, penned an open letter calling on the art world for stronger support of the neurodiverse and disabled communities, whose everyday needs are often overlooked in American society. She names a few examples of how the art world inadvertently reinforces ableism, such as the controversial Vessel, the accessibility of several New York galleries, and the lackluster representation of disabled artists in exhibitions.

“Regarding the art world, navigating and addressing these issues will require taking fundamental steps toward inclusion, from implementing practical solutions to increasing awareness among art institutions and community members,” Emily Sara writes in her letter. “I am therefore calling on galleries, curators, museums, institutions of higher education, artists, and other art institutions: welcoming the neurodiverse and disabled is long overdue.”

IKEA Buys Naming Rights to Heatherwick’s Vessel at Hudson Yards

2019-04-01T09:00:00-04:00

Since opening in March, Thomas Heatherwick’s Vessel at Hudson Yards has caught headlines for its ostentatious design, its billing as “public art”, its repudiation of the tenants of accessibility, and its overreaching rights to the photos taken by visitors. Also drawing plenty of scrutiny is the name of the project, the Vessel, which despite its prominence on promotional materials, remains a working title.

As visitors begin streaming in, Related Companies, the developer behind the massive, $25 billion neighborhood, has been asking for public input on the perfect name for their architectural centerpiece. And, the internet and company has come up with a good sum of suggestions; ‘The Copper Kebab’, ‘Lady Liberty’s Diva Cup’, and ‘Escalator Broken’ have been particularly popular options.

However, just as the free ticket to climb comes with the price of waiting an hour online to reserve a spot to wait in line, everything public about this project has been a hoax—including the competition...

Could the photos and videos taken by visitors to the Vessel really become its private property?

2019-03-21T19:50:00-04:00

The Hudson Yards development has been the subject of much recent criticism, but it is a notice in its Terms & Conditions that has crossed the line for many of its visitors. Effective March 19th, one would find this warning article on the Vessel's website:

7. NOTICE OF FILMING OR RECORDING. I agree that all photographs, audio recordings, and video footage taken of me while at the Vessel, and any derivative works (“Recordings”), will be the sole property of Company. As the owner of the Recordings, Company has the unconditional, irrevocable right (exercisable by Company or by third parties on Company’s behalf) to reproduce, display and use the Recordings, including for advertising, marketing and promotional purposes, in all media and formats, whether now known or later developed. I further authorize Company to store the Recordings on a database and transfer the Recording to third parties in conjunction with security and marketing procedures undertaken by Company.

This one paragraph ha...

"What's in a name?" Let's have the public decide what Thomas Heatherwick's NYC installation should be called

2019-01-25T19:38:00-05:00

Thomas Heatherwick’s 150-foot-tall, honeycomb-shaped climbable public art installation at Hudson Yards is set to open for public climbing in March along with the complex’s Shops and Restaurants on March 15. Known for some time as “The Vessel,” the bronzed steel and concrete structure has no official title as of yet.

Thomas Heatherwick's highly anticipated bronzed steel and concrete structure will have its public debut on March 15th. Having been in the headlines for the past few months the project's most recent update lies in what the structure will be officially named. According to a source from 6sqft, the Vessel "was always a placeholder until the public experienced it. We're excited to have the public help us with a name."

Image © Related-Oxford

According to The Hudson Yard's website, the structure has been named "New York's Staircase," a fitting name due to the 154 interconnecting flights of stairs - almost 2,500 individual steps—and 80 landings. Many have expressed their opinions on the project as a whole. Those who are in favor of the public, interactive landmark are excited about its completion while others have shown their contempt for the project overall.

View this post on Instagram Turning heads on the @HighlineNYC, looking back at #HeatherwickStudio’s centerpiece at ...

Thomas Heatherwick's Vessel launches early ticket signup for spring opening

2018-10-22T15:42:00-04:00

If you've been itching to climb that new Thomas Heatherwick-designed 'Vessel' staircase sculpture at the Hudson Yards development in New York City, you'll have to exercise patience first until the $150 million attraction officially opens to the public in spring 2019.

To manage the anticipated crowds, the intricate 150-foot-tall steel structure will require visitors to get tickets for dedicated time slots which will become available in February. An early ticket signup form for ubereager climbers ("in good health and free from any physical limitations") has been launched on Hudson Yard's website.

View this post on Instagram Comprised of almost 2,500 steps and standing 150 feet tall, Thomas Heatherwick’s interactive design piece is opening to the public in Spring of 2019. Head to our story to sign up for tickets when the schedule is released in February. #HelloHudsonYards
A post shared by Hudson Yards New York (@_hudsonyardsnyc) on Oct 18, 2018 at 9:32am PDT

The Ves...

"Probably the most creative person in the world" — The New Yorker profiles Thomas Heatherwick

2018-02-19T15:02:00-05:00

Heatherwick Studio employs architects, but Heatherwick is not an architect. His work could be described as a celebration of never having absorbed, in a formal architectural education, dogma about designing things to be flush and taut. “There’s a Harry Potter-esque, Victorian quirkiness in the work,” Ingels said. “An element of steampunk, almost.”

In his long read for The New Yorker, Ian Parker tells the story of New York's (potential) new Eiffel Tower, the Vessel at Hudson Yards, and profiles the British designer behind this and many other ambitious structures, Thomas Heatherwick.

Climb Heatherwick's $150 Million Stairway in the Times' Daily 360

2017-12-12T15:32:00-05:00

Everyday, The New York Times brings its readers a new 360-degree video with their series, The Daily 360. In one of their recent videos for the project, Times journalists give us a behind the scenes look at Thomas Heatherwick's ongoing public project in New York City’s Hudson Yards development, the Vessel. Slated to open early 2019, get an early experience of the $150 million stairway with this immersive video—VR headset not necessary.

Thomas Heatherwick’s 150-foot, climbable Vessel tops out in Hudson Yards

2017-12-06T12:34:00-05:00

The Vessel, a 150-foot-tall climbable sculpture made of bronzed steel and concrete, topped out Wednesday, serving as the public centerpiece of Hudson Yards Public Square and Gardens. Designed by Heatherwick Studio, the $150 million interactive landmark includes 154 interconnecting flights of stairs, nearly 2,500 individual steps and 80 landings. The idea for the project stems from Related Companies’ chairman, Stephen Ross, who called it “New York’s Eiffel Tower.” According to YIMBY, the final piece of the 600-ton structure will be installed today, nearly eight months after construction began.

Thomas Heatherwick’s 150-foot climbable ‘Vessel’ hits halfway mark at Hudson Yards

2017-10-09T11:56:00-04:00

In April, construction began on Hudson Yards’ Vessel, a 150-foot-tall climbable steel structure designed by Heatherwick Studio and its 100,000 pound-components were put in place by crane. Construction on the $200 million “public landmark” has now hit its halfway mark. The structure includes 154 geometric-lattice linked flights of stairs, 80 landings and will able to hold 1,000 visitors.

Via CityRealty

Renderings of Thomas Heatherwick's "Vessel" for New York's Hudson Yard revealed

2016-09-14T12:43:00-04:00

Big, bold and basket-shaped, the structure, “Vessel,” stands 15 stories, weighs 600 tons and is filled with 2,500 climbable steps. Long under wraps, it is the creation of Thomas Heatherwick, 46, an acclaimed and controversial British designer, and will rise in the mammoth Far West Side development Hudson Yards, anchoring a five-acre plaza and garden that will not open until 2018. Some may see a jungle gym, others a honeycomb.

But Stephen M. Ross, the billionaire founder and chairman of Related Companies, which is developing Hudson Yards with Oxford Properties Group, has his own nickname for “Vessel”: “the social climber.” And the steep price tag Mr. Ross’s privately held company is paying for Mr. Heatherwick’s installation? More than $150 million.

“My studio was commissioned to design a centerpiece for an unusual new piece of land in New York. In a city full of eye-catching structures, our first thought was that it shouldn’t just be something to look at. Instead we wanted to make something that everybody could use, touch, relate to," states Heatherwick in the press release. "Influenced by images we had seen of Indian stepwells, made from hundreds of flights of stairs going down into the ground, an idea emerged to use flights of stairs as building elements.”

Comprised of 154 interconnected stairs and 80 landings, the structure rises from a 50 ft diameter base to 150 ft at the top. A painted steel structure ...