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Curtain wall made of stone-glass laminate

Architecture firm REX designed a façade made of translucent marble for the Perelman Performing Arts Center in New York. Under the direction of Josef Gartner, the stone slabs were laminated between panes of glass, joined together to form façade elements and finally mounted on the building. 

The vividly veined marble gives the façade of the Perelman Performing Arts Center its unique aesthetic.
The vividly veined marble gives the façade of the Perelman Performing Arts Center its unique aesthetic.
Each of the almost 5,000 marble slabs was photographed individually. On this basis, the architects designed the façade for the new building.
Each of the almost 5,000 marble slabs was photographed individually. On this basis, the architects designed the façade for the new building.
The stone-glass laminates were combined into 1,280 façade elements and mounted on a steel substructure.
The stone-glass laminates were combined into 1,280 façade elements and mounted on a steel substructure.
The backlit stone structure of the façade is particularly effective in the dark.
The backlit stone structure of the façade is particularly effective in the dark.
Vertical section of south façade
Vertical section of south façade

The Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) is located at the World Trade Center site in Manhattan, across the street from the 9/11 Memorial and One World Trade Center.

The 42-m high, cube-shaped building features a one-of-a-kind translucent glass façade made of Portuguese marble. During the day, the façade appears to be solid stone, while at night, the façade is lit from within, emitting a warm glow that is visible from afar. The design concept of REX in New York features a special arrangement of the façade elements; all four sides of the cube should ultimately look similar.

Marble slabs in laminated safety glass

The marble used in the PAC NYC comes from a quarry in Portugal. After the marble blocks were quarried and approved by the architect, they were sent from the quarry for processing. There, the marble blocks were cut into stone panels 1,483 mm x 873 mm x 12 mm in size. The fragile stone panels were coated with epoxy resin. This was necessary to fill in the pores in the stone, making the stone panels more stable for transportation. Once dry, the stone panels were laminated between two 5-mm thick panes of glass using an EVA interlayer. They were then joined together into double glazed units more than 50 mm thick. All panes were fitted with a so-called "picture frame", an aluminium frame around the stone and glass which made it possible to install it in the façade unit.

Josef Gartner GmbH

Exhibitor contact

Josef Gartner GmbH
Gundelfingen, Germany
www.josef-gartner.de
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