Other Medians

Public Competition | New York, NY | Speculative

As part of Studio Ames’ entry for the Beyond the Centerline Competition, which asked designers to reimagine development along the medians of Park Avenue, we submitted five drawings which represents all the past, present and future conditions of the site. Our proposal, “Other Medians,” reevaluates the site where the Racquet & Tennis Club designed by McKim, Mead and White and the Seagram Building designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, converge. The latent conversation between tradition and invention is a fertile ground to further investigate potential spatial scenarios. 

These drawings hold in mind what the French philosopher, Henri Lefebvre, refers to as ‘The Spatial Triad.’ The Triad includes lived space, conceived space and perceived space. In addition, we propose a final fourth type of space, an “unfathomable” space. Our project hovers in the realm of being strictly speculative yet buildable, a place of density yet release, a workplace yet a place of leisure, which specifically address the potentials of where both prime real estate and the natural landscape collide. In this way, “Other Medians” can be viewed as a looking glass to the past and a time machine to the future.

Project Team: Daisy Ames and Betsy Clifton