513-531 West 26th Street (New York City, New York)

 office building, art museum / art gallery

A complex of four existing buildings developed in 2009. The four were joined and renovated with new windows in a variety of shapes and forms, with stainless steel and zinc framing and paneling. The facades are all clad in brick, now painted a matching dark grey. New glassed-in rooftop additions were built onto three of the buildings as well.

The easternmost building, No. 513, was completed in 1921 as a 3-story factory. Designed by Abraham Ratner, it has two large windows separated by a thin pier on the ground floor, and uninterrupted horizontal window openings on the upper two floors. Above is a brick parapet topped by the new glass penthouse.

The next building, at No. 515, is now 7 stories tall, and was completed in 1911 as a 6-story factory. Designed by Rouse & Goldstone, It has three main bays, with two narrower with narrow vertical windows on either side. The main bays contain large rectangular windows with the new metal framing. The corner piers extend beyond the main roof line as bulkheads. On top is the new glass penthouse floor.

The tallest building, at No. 521, has 10 floors, and was completed in 1914 as a 9-story factory. Designed by Harris H. Uris, who was also the owner, it is two bays wide, with large rectangular windows, except for the 2nd floor, which retains smaller, historic window openings. The three brick piers have corbelled capitals on the 8th floor supporting a stone lintel above the windows. There are corbelled belt courses above and below the 9th floor, and corbelled brick parapet at the top, with a new glass penthouse above.

The westernmost building at No. 525 is 4 stories, and was completed in 1905. It was designed by Paul C. Hunter as a factory. It is six bays wide (four wide bays flanking two narrow central bays). From west to east, there are street-level entrances in bays one, three, and four; basement level entrances in bays two and five; and a raised entrance in bay six. Some of the lower entrances have segmental-arched windows above. The outer bays on the 2nd & 3rd floors have projecting, angled bay windows, framed in steel, with painted brick quoins on either side. At the roof is a simple brick parapet, stepped up over the central bays.

This building was the first of several in the neighborhood erected for the Harris H. Uris Iron Works. The building’s basement housed the firm’s structural department, while the first floor was given over to drafting rooms and offices. The upper floors were devoted to the actual manufacturing operations. While the Uris family eventually exited the metal industry in favor of the real estate market, the building at 525 West 26th Street remained home to at least one metal manufacturer into the late 20th century.

Today, the complex of buildings are all occupied by art-related business, including Ryan Lee Gallery, Robert Mann Gallery, Pace Prints, George Billis Gallery, Magnan Metz Gallery, Barry Friedman Ltd., and Claire Oliver Gallery.