New landmark

"The Vessel" at Hudson Yards with DIAMANT balustrades from Saint-Gobain

The walk-in sculpture "The Hudson Yards" was opened in March 2019 in the west of Manhattan. The history of this 46-meter-high sculpture stretches into 2013: British architect and artist Thomas Heatherwick was asked to design a generally accessible landmark that would form the heart of the new quarter in the metropolis. Heatherwick pursued the idea of "creating a memorable, identity-forming structure that visitors can use and touch. He was inspired, among other things, by the image of Indian stepped fountains.

He transferred the design idea into the built reality into a steel structure consisting of honeycomb staircases. In cubature, the building resembles a beehive or a basket. 154 stairs with a total of 2500 steps are distributed over 16 floors and connect 80 viewing platforms. The steel construction consists of a total of 75 prefabricated segments. Each of these was lifted individually by a construction crane. The segments had been produced in Monfalcone, Italy, and transported by sea to New York City.

The stairway to nowhere in The Vessel is an lively experience that provides astounding views of construction, people and the city. 9,000 square meters of glass balustrades in SGG DIAMANT - also produced in Europe - guarantee the visitor a safe stay and, since they hardly appear as such, underline the sculptural character of the walk-in landmark.