Morris Adjmi’s 363 Lafayette featured in the Architect’s Newspaper
Boston Valley Terra Cotta manufactured the dark grey matte glazed components for 363 Lafayette’s unique facade. The units of the terra cotta frieze were extruded and the geometric projections were modified by hand in Boston Valley’s finishing department. Installation is nearing completion and the building has received some press recently — read more about it below.
TITLE: Morris Adjmi gives classic New York terra-cotta cladding a modern twist
SOURCE: Architect’s Newspaper
BY: Matthew Marani
Read the original article on the Architect’s Newspaper
For the color scheme and materiality of 363 Lafayette, Morris Adjmi reinterpreted the area’s historically narrow terracotta mullions, window surrounds, and brick piers, into a much wider layout. Designed by the firm and crafted by Buffalo’s Boston Valley Terra Cotta (BVTC), the geometric pattern of the terra-cotta reliefs was conceived by the design team as an abstraction of neighboring Classical and Richardsonian Romanesque detailing.
The custom-made terra-cotta rainscreen was installed on BVTC’s TerraClad clip system that attaches to a perimeter concrete beam and a medium-gauge framing wall. A series of gaskets and isolators allow the system to adjust to thermal expansion while reducing wind-induced vibration.