Brooklyn’s Aperture 538 connects to neighboring brownstones
A copper screen is central to the exterior of Aperture 538, a 10-unit, multifamily residence in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, New York City. Completed in 2015, the 13,090-square-foot building is located on an infill lot surrounded by brownstone, around the corner from Fulton Street and a short walk to the Barclays Center. The building’s flat, warm brown face is meant to continue the rhythm of the brownstones on Washington Avenue.
“Our primary design move was to clean up the façade by presenting a single plane to the street, like the neighboring brownstones,” says Luca Andrisani, RA, AIA, SARA, principal architect at Luca Andrisani Architect, the façade designer and interior architect. “We sought to mimic the warm coloring of the brownstone, first with Corten and later with weathered copper.”
Andrisani says they originally looked at using Corten steel, but fear of the damaging effect of the rust led them to choose copper. “Over time,” he says, “the copper will darken to match the neighboring brownstones. Ultimately copper proved to be the best choice for its durability, interaction with components and minimal run off.”
Hi-Tech Metals Inc., Maspeth, N.Y., fabricated the copper screen, which is finished to a Corten steel appearance and is perforated with an abstracted image of the Brooklyn Bridge. “We wanted to create a play of interior and exterior light through the use of perforations, but also give the residents a system that could be practical and could adapt to their needs,” Andrisani explains. “At the same time we needed to meet the basic requirements of light and air. Ultimately we looked at iconic images for Brooklyn and came up with an abstract picture of the Brooklyn Bridge as modified for light and air requirements.”
“The finish is related to the desire of relating to the surrounding brownstones,” he adds. “We wanted to use a material that would develop a patina with time and react to the elements, almost like if it was alive.”
The façade moves with shutters in front of windows and balconies that can be opened to allow residents direct views onto the tree-lined street. “The shutters enable residents to have clear or filtered views of the street,” Andrisani explains. “A code limitation of 10-inch projection determined the module of the copper panels comprising the façade. With shutters open, residents have unfiltered views of Washington Avenue. The bi-fold shutters are comprised of 1/8-inch copper on a steel substructure. They pivot and slide along trolleys to open.”
The remainder of the exterior has brown-framed windows sliding along the grid of black insulated Galvalume panels from Kingspan Insulated Panels, Deland, Fla. As Andrisani explains, the sides of the building are lot lines, with openings only at the top where railings are made of black aluminum perforated with the same custom pattern as the copper screen. “The choice of the color was to ultimately accentuate even more the copper on the front,” he says.
The project also features GKD Metal Fabrics‘ Omega 1510 Bronze metal mesh inside the elevator cabins, on the walls, in front of the mirror laminate. Andrisani says the material relates well to the façade.
Aperture 538, New York City
Award: 2016 North American Copper in Architecture (NACIA) Award for New Construction
Developer: Sam Boymelgreen
Design architect: Luca Andrisani Architects, New York City, www.lucaandrisaniarchitects.com
Copper screen fabricator: Hi-Tech Metals Inc., Maspeth, N.Y., hi-techmetals.com
Metal mesh: GKD Metal Fabrics, Cambridge, Md., www.gkdmetalfabrics.com
Metal wall panels: Kingspan Insulated Metal Panels, Deland, Fla., www.kingspanpanels.us