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On March 15, after 12 years of planning and six of construction, the Related Companies will open the gates to its new $25 billion enclave [...] Besides being big, Hudson Yards represents something fundamentally new to New York. It’s a one-shot, supersized virtual city-state, plugged into a global metropolis but crafted to the specifications of a single boss: Related’s chairman, Stephen Ross — NY Magazine
New York's new Hudson Yards is a preview of what major cities may look like in the next few years. Upon first glance, the new complex oozes a distinct look. Some might call it progressive luxury design, others may think otherwise. However, the 12 year project has several people looking to stake a... View full entry
Any visitor to New York over the past few years will have witnessed this curious new breed of pencil-thin tower. Poking up above the Manhattan skyline like etiolated beanpoles, they seem to defy the laws of both gravity and commercial sense. They stand like naked elevator shafts awaiting their floors, raw extrusions of capital piled up until it hits the clouds. — The Guardian
In his latest long-form piece, The Guardian architecture critic Oliver Wainwright shows how the advent of the new 'pencil tower' building type is rapidly transforming New York City's skyline, digs in the history of zoning laws, and explains how "air rights" allow (an abundance of) cash to buy a... View full entry
Hedge funder Ken Griffin has closed on a massive penthouse at 220 Central Park South, paying a record-shattering $238 million, according to sources familiar with the deal.
The Citadel founder has long been rumored as the buyer of the condominium’s most lavish spread — a 23,000-square-foot quadplex encompassing the 50th through 53rd floors of the limestone tower, developed by Vornado Realty Trust and designed by Robert A.M. Stern. The asking price was $250 million.
— The Real Deal
After Ken Griffin dropped a sweet quarter billion on his new NYC digs, he didn't appear entirely penniless and recently secured a few other neat places to crash when traveling to London, Chicago, or Miami. "Earlier this week, he reportedly scooped up a house in London for around $122 million,"... View full entry
It is clear not everyone is tightening the purse strings in tougher economic times following a year of record-smashing home sales in 2018. Despite global boom-time economies starting to wane, the big spenders were still out in force snapping up some of the most expensive properties on the planet right up until the end of the year. — The Spaces
A round-up of the world's five priciest homes sold in 2018, plus another three that are still on the market in case you're looking for a swanky new abode in 2019. View full entry
Located along the banks of the Xi River in Zhongshan in Guangdong, the Keppel Cove Marina & Clubhouse is UNStudio Asia's latest completed project. The 50,000 square-meter masterplan comprises a marina with direct access to the Xi River, a service building, high-end residential villas and... View full entry
Back in January, the Jean Nouvel-designed MoMA tower was on the heels of reaching its full 82-story height and now, that milestone has been accomplished. Last week, the long-awaited supertall, named 53W53, topped out and it now stands at 1,050 feet tall, tying with the New York Times building and the Chrysler Building as the city’s sixth tallest building. — Curbed
Jean Nouvel's ultra-luxurious MoMA tower 53W53 is now topped out to its full height at 1,050 feet. Once completed, the tower will include 145 residential units designed by Thierry Despont, amenities, and new MoMA galleries and a restaurant that are expected to open in 2019. You can check out... View full entry
To Skip Phillips, consumer-driven demand has moved the infinity pool away from its original design premise of blending with the landscape. It doesn’t have to be a vertical drop, like that at Marina Bay Sands. “The impetus for this came from the buying public,” and, he adds, “an uneducated pool industry.”
To understand how the infinity pool became a status symbol, it’s important to realize that “wellness” is a luxury commodity.
— The Outline
This Outline piece by Daisy Alioto dives into the origins of the vanishing edge infinity pool, which now — thanks to a lot of help from social media — has evolved into a trendy symbol of luxury. View full entry
The construction of this and other so-called giga-mansions underscores a new gilded age in the United States and especially in LA. [...]
The splurge comes amid a housing shortage that has fuelled a homelessness crisis, with 57,000 people without permanent shelter in LA county [...]. The Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez compared the city’s hilltop mansions to giant tombstones marking the death of humility.
— The Guardian
The Guardian takes a peek into the world of ultra-luxury real estate developer Niles Niami whose latest endeavor—the sprawling Bel Air hilltop giga-mansion with its four swimming pools, 20 bedrooms, movie theater, and nightly club aptly called The One—frequently makes the news for being... View full entry
After breaking ground on its first-ever real estate project last fall (the aptly named Aston Martin Residences in downtown Miami), British automaker Aston Martin has unveiled never-before-seen renderings of the building’s amenity spaces. — Robb Report
Aston Martin's first venture into branded luxury real estate broke ground in Downtown Miami last fall and is expected to welcome its deep-pocketed residents in 2021. Until then, check out these new renderings of some of the amenities at the Aston Martin Residences tower. Aston Martin... View full entry
To many longtime residents, the cookie-cutter constructions stripped Venice of its distinctive architectural character, turning parts of the neighborhood into uniform eyesores.
“Over the last year or two specifically, we’re seeing more chances being taken and more unique developments going up,” Lackey said. “This wave of architecture is great for Venice, which has always been a hub of individuality.”
— Los Angeles Times
Boring boxy developments have taken over Venice, California in the last 15 years, but in this LA Times piece, some architects think it's time for the coastal town to return to its eclectic architectural roots...currently in the form of multimillion-dollar luxury homes. View full entry
The condo venture is just one of the ways in which [Aston Martin] is diversifying into a general luxury brand, rather than just a car company...The 391 condos will sell for between $600,000 and $50 million, and include seven penthouses and a duplex penthouse with private pools. There will also be a spa, cinemas, and a virtual golf room, as well as direct access to a yacht marina. You get the picture. — Quartz
From $4 million submarines to $4,000 baby strollers, luxury automaker Aston Martin is expanding their brand. Their latest venture is the Aston Martin Residences, a sail-shaped, 66-story apartment tower that broke ground in downtown Miami last week. Completion of the tower is currently slated for... View full entry
What could be more fitting as a symbol of rebirth in the City of Light, than a golden sun streaming spiralling metal rays? That’s the resplendent installation that Louis Vuitton visual creative director Faye Mcleod conceived for the façade of the maison’s new Peter Marino-designed Paris flagship. — Wallpaper
Louis Vuitton moves back to Place Vendôme in the most expensive part of Paris. The store occupies two 18th centurary hôtel particuliers. On the building façade, shines a giant golden sun. Apart from this addition, the exterior has not been transformed. The interiors of the store are... View full entry
A property firm run by a business partner of US President Donald Trump has awarded a £250 million ($320 million) contract to developers for the construction of a "Versace-branded" skyscraper in London.
Nine Elms Property awarded the contract to developers Multiplex for the construction of AYKON London One, a fifty-story tower to be built in central London at Nine Elms on the South Bank.
— Business Insider
"The world's first Versace-branded tower", AYKON London One, valued at £590 million, will consist of fifty floors and 450 apartments from one to three bedrooms, interiors of which will be designed in partnership with luxury fashion house Versace and feature panoramic-view "winter gardens". In... View full entry
Forget about soft drinks and potato chips - a "vending machine" in Singapore is offering up luxury vehicles, including Bentleys, Ferraris and Lamborghinis.
Used car seller Autobahn Motors opened a futuristic 15-story showroom in December, with vehicles on display in 60 slots, billing it as the "world's largest luxury car vending machine".
— Reuters
Herzog & de Meuron, in collaboration with Robert Wennett, have designed a new, “smart” luxury residential complex in Miami Beach at 1111 Lincoln Residences. As seen in a new batch of almost-disturbingly hyperreal renderings, the residences are built around leafy, Raymond Jungles-designed... View full entry
