Hemisphere House

 apartment building, commercial building

264-foot, 20-story modernist residential building completed in 1963. Designed by Boak & Raad, it is clad in light-grey brick above a 1-story base of stone, metal, and glass. The main entrance is on 57th Street, near the east end, with recessed bronze-and-glass double-doors, sidelights, and transom set in an entry niche lined with curved mosaic walls and white marble. At the east end is a plate-glass storefront, and there is a 2-toned wood-and-glass restaurant storefront to the west of the entrance. Above both storefronts and the entry there is dark-brown polished granite, extending up to the 2nd floor at the two bays of the north facade with wide triple-windows. There are seven total bays on this elevation, with recessed end bays with single-windows. The next bays in are the wide triple-window bays (which are framed in white metal; the east one is directly above the main entrance). The middle three bays are also recessed, and consist of a smaller triple-window bay and two double-windows. Silver metal railings line the top of the base where the middle and end bays are set back. There are small, slit vents below the windows at each bay except for the end bays. The middle bays set back above the 14th & 15th floors, and the other bays have larger setbacks above the 16th. The center bay at the 17th-18th floors has a decorative metal grille instead of windows, and the full facade sets back above the 18th & 19th floors.

The ground floor along the avenue is lined with metal-and-glass storefronts, except for at the north end, which has a continuation of the wood-and-glass restaurant storefront from 57th Street. The brown granite band also continues above the storefronts, with metal railings at the recessed middle bays. The north and south non-recessed wings match, both with two bays of double-windows flanking a single-window bay. The short inward-facing side walls bordering the recessed middle section both have a bay of single-windows. The three center bays at the middle section are less recessed than the others, and have bands of five windows, the outer four divided vertically by metal mullions. The deeper recessed bay to the south is similar, but slightly wider, with an extra window pane at the south end. The deeper recessed north area is split into two bays, both with triple-windows. There is also a narrow, recessed bay at the far north and south ends of the facade, each with single-windows. The north "projecting" wing sets back above the 16th & 17th floors, and the south wing above the 18th & 19th floors. The three middle bays set back above the 15th & 16th floors. There are additional shallow setbacks among the top floors, with four mechanical penthouses rising from the roof, and a taller, central water tower enclosure that features a large, decorative metal screen on its west exposure. The various indentations of the facades adds a nice modulation to the building's large mass.

The south facade on 56th Street has more storefronts at the west end of the ground floor. The east end, still clad in brown granite, has a service entrance separated by two windows from an entrance and exit to the underground parking garage. The upper floors have recessed end bays with single-windows, and four middle bays - two with bands of five windows like those on the west facade, flanked by two with triple-windows. The two middle bays set back above the 16th floor, and the other bays set back above the 18th floor, with angled balconies extending toward the center, over the setback of the middle bays below. There is another setback above the 19th floor.

On the east facade, there are north and south end wings similar to those on the west facade. The next bays in, a single-window and a triple-window are somewhat recessed, and the middle bays are farther recessed, more so on the north. The north half has two triple-window bays and two single-windows, and the south half has two groups of single-windows paired with double-windows. The middle bays have shallow setbacks at the top floors. Most of the building's upper setbacks have metal railings around terraces.

The building contains 242 apartment units. The ground floor is occupied by a Starbucks coffee, Fontana Gallery electronics store, Davidoff of Geneva tobacco shop, Madison jewelers, and Rue 57 restaurant.

www.hemispherehouse.com/#/the%20building/