Finger Apartment

Private and public zones cross in plan & section to create a knuckle.

New York, NY.

Renovation of a small apartment for a family of three in the top floor of a five story walk-up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The existing plan is a dumb-bell configuration, with two 16’ × 11’ rooms bridged by a long, narrow living space. Two recently added skylights and a new ceiling both take advantage of the sloped roof, and provided opportunities to activate the interior. Shifting the kitchen and bath from the back room into the narrow middle zone freed up the light-filled perimeter for living spaces. Daylight floods the shower and kitchen (the knuckle where public and private living zones cross) through the skylights, while perimeter artificial light coves highlight the edges of the tightly trimmed ceiling section. In the back of the apartment, a new deck was laid above the plumbing extension. This sets off a private precinct within the apartment and provides under-floor storage.

AIA New York Chapter Interior Merit Award 2009
Residential Architect Design Award 2011

Related Links
Want to see inside the process of designing the Finger Apartment? Follow this link to see the graphic story

“A Narrow Victory.” dwell magazine featured the apartment on the ‘09 June cover. Follow this link to see the slideshow.