NEW YORK—If you are in the neighborhood, it is hard to overlook all of the circular windows on a pair of hotels on West 16th and 17th streets at Ninth Avenue.
Referencing portholes on a ship, the Maritime Hotel’s endless grid of round windows face Ninth Avenue (pictured at left), and its new neighbor has a similar facade, albeit far more hip.
The adjacent Dream Downtown Hotel has a contemporary design with a circular motif infused throughout its exterior and interiors. Clad in stainless steel tiles, the slick design is softened by the warm wood of the hotel’s main doors.
Designed by Frank Fusaro of Handel Architects, the 12-story hotel was completed in June 2011. The firm described the facade thus: “The tiles reflect the sky, sun, and moon, and when the light hits the façade perfectly, the stainless steel disintegrates and the circular windows appear to float like bubbles.” Dream Downtown Hotel is in Chelsea.
All photos by Arts Observer
The wood doors warm up the design of the hotel’s contemporary metal exterior.
On the 16th Street side of the hotel, the facade is skinned in two perforated stainless steel sheets.
The entry to the hotel’s Romera New York restaurant.
The 17th Street side of the hotel features a stainless steel brick tile facade.