Construction progresses on the Irish Arts Center, a five-story building at 726 Eleventh Avenue in Hell’s Kitchen. Designed by Davis Brody Bond and Ciaran O’Conner, the structure is located between West 51st and West 52nd Streets, just around the corner from its original three-story location at 553 West 51st Street.
Irish Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The project involved the repurposing and expansion of a former two-story garage, named Cybert Tire, a Hell’s Kitchen mainstay since its founding in 1916. The garage’s front face was preserved and expanded with a steel-framed superstructure. The extent of the original brick façade is marked by a subtle white roof outline between the second and third stories. The overall result is a simple design respectful to the site’s history, featuring a red brick curtain wall and a grid of tall windows, with double-height glass spanning the top two stories.
Irish Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
Irish Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Irish Arts Center will contain a 199-seat flexible theater; rehearsal studio classroom with a full-size mirror wall that can be curtained over, removable ballet barres, and hidden white boards; rehearsal spaces; a library classroom with an adjacent kitchen and storage space; exhibit areas; two dressing rooms; a café; and a restored historic 99-seat theater. The center aims to present and showcase live performances, exhibitions, films, and visual arts content celebrating Irish history and culture though the works of emerging and renowned artists both Irish and Irish-American.
The new facility is expected to open sometime this year.
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Nice.
You can tell it’s high quality construction, but no matter how long I look at it I cannot seem to like it.
Flat and uninspired especially in the context of the gorgeous facades flanking it.
It would have been nice to see some Irish type of embellishments on the facade ,to fit in more with the character of the surrounding buildings.
I agree. Wish it had more of an Irish feel, less brick, more down to earth stone. But maybe it’s too early. Will see.
Thought:
The building owners wouldn’t want to make an “Irish” building because if the Irish Arts Center goes bankrupt they could sell it easily, well, easily before COVID.
I dont really see how it fit in with the building on the sides unless there is more art work done on the top like the building around it..
It looks like a boring version of a jailhouse in a cheap b- movie Western. Why is nyc so good at uninspiring architecture?
It might not be the most beautiful building on the outside, but I can’t wait to hear about all the activities, classes, theater, etc. being planned to take place on the inside. The Irish Arts Center has always been a big plus to the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, and now it’s a big plus plus!
Good luck, can’t wait to learn about the classes offered.