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| York & Sawyer, Federal Reserve Bank of New York (1922) |
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| W. Facade, Federal Reserve Bank |
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| Varying rustication, Federal Reserve Bank |
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| S. Facade, Federal Reserve Bank |
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| S. Facade (roof), Federal Reserve Bank |
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| Varying rustication, Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, Palazzo Medici, Florence (1445)* |
Situated independently on its own block at 33 Liberty Street amid the Financial District
of Manhattan, the facades of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (the Fed) remind
one of the Palazzo Medici designed by Renaissance architect Michelozzo di
Bartolomeo in 1445. The form of the block it sits on stays true to the
irregular trapezoidal shape of the structure of the subject. The baseline of
the Fed tilts perceptibly as it stands on a gently sloping site. Most
prominently, while the Fed has a much taller design to accommodate higher storeys
and wider needs than its Florentine predecessor, the South façade of the Fed
and Palazzo Medici present three primary sections on the exterior, each decorated
with varying stone textures.
Both portray a decreasing degree of rustication as the buildings ascend. The masonry on the ground level of Palazzo
Medici appears rougher and rugged with the use of shorter stones as compared to
the bulkier, smoother, longer and wider stones in the first section of the Fed.
Noticeably, the very first layer of masonry in the Manhattan edifice has the
chunkiest stones acting as the foundation, much like the stereobate or
stylobate of the Parthenon. In place of the windows topped with triangular
pediments and fixated within a large blind arch on the ground floor of Palazzo
Medici, four short and narrow rectangular windows with metal mesh align the
first level on the South façade of the Fed.
The two-dimensional brick-like stonework that covers the middle section of Palazzo Medici looks akin to Palazzo Ruccelai
by Leon Battista Alberti as well as the third and vastest section of the Fed. The
masonry on the second section of the Fed appears similar to that of its ground
level with the subtle difference of thinner and shorter stones with shallower
rustication. Between Palazzo Medici and the Fed, the latter has a taller second
section that incorporates two rows of windows – small square windows in the
upper row, and vertical-rectangular windows (A) and arch windows (B) in the
lower row obeying a rational and regular rhythmic sequence of A_B_B_A in the
lower row. The two larger arch windows in this lower row almost mirrors a
combination between the ground floor and second floor of the former example: its
lack of a triangular pediment, the application of arch windows instead of
rectangular ones, blind arches, and apparent keystones and voussoirs serving
more as a decorative rather than structural function.
The top section of Palazzo Medici shows a completely smooth stone-brick surface with barely any visible rustication whereas
the third section of the Fed maintains the shallow rustication seen in Palazzo
Ruccelai and the middle section of Palazzo Medici. The third section of the Fed
occupies the majority of its façade. It contains a row of vertical-rectangular
(A) windows and arch windows (B)—smaller than that in the second section—in a
pattern of A_B B_B B_A, an additional six rows of the same vertical-rectangular
glass windows above it that correspond to the same rhythm: A_A A_A A_A. (The
fourth section of the Fed cannot be seen easily from the South street
elevation, so this description will not elaborate on it.) Unlike Palazzo
Medici, the Fed has two to three additional sections on top of the roof that
assume more irregular forms. From the South, the highest levels almost emerge
as the round towers of medieval castles.
Rather than using intricate stringcourses as dividers of the sections as at Palazzo Medici, the Fed uses a plain and even
stringcourse between the first and second sections, and an elegantly simple
balustrade that runs continuously around the building between the second and
third sections. The roof of the Fed appears as a hybrid between blind arcades
and the heavy, projecting cornices on the roof of Palazzo Medici. The implementation
of glass windows in the blind arcades follows an irrational and irregular
rhythm: (0 = no window, 1 = window) 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0,
resulting in a peculiar Baroque-like contrast against the regular rhythm and
systematic position of the windows in the rest of the building.
Both Palazzo Medici and the Fed are associated to bankers, but the former was purposed for a private residential
mansion while the latter is a high-security bank that safeguards national
wealth. The descending intensity of rustication according to the ascension of
the storeys—and not forgetting the metal meshes over the dark windows—allude to
the impression of fierce protection, national defense and mighty strength that
recall the Florentine civic towers on the lower levels towards a more private,
corporate setting on the higher levels. The balustrade that is more ubiquitous
in Georgian houses seems to imply the transition between public and private as
the rustication changes from rougher and thicker to smoother and thinner. In
the absence of Classical orders, columns and pilasters, the strict columns of
glass windows take their place: the singular column of windows on the sides
guards the wider column of double-windows in the middle. This verticality is
balanced by the horizontality of the lower stringcourse, balustrade, and blind
arcades at the top. On the whole, the layout of the façade is rational,
symmetrical and proportional, and at the same time, creative in the rustication
and playful in rhythmic patterns.
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| 33 Liberty Street, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, S. facade (rough on-site sketch) |
Original photography by Sophie G.
*Palazzo Medici Ricardi, StudyBlue Inc. Feb 10, 2013. Web. Oct 26, 2013.
