60 East 12th Street

60 East 12th Street

This transformation of an existing 1950s post-war apartment house employed a wall system that would change the identity of the building and create a new architectural presence on Broadway, as well as upgrade the performance characteristics of the exterior envelope system. To facilitate the identity change while respecting the positions of the existing window openings, the redesign grouped windows together in horizontally oriented window surrounds. The angular corner was emphasized through a metal clad “tower” component.

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.