The former Huntington Hartford Gallery of Modern Art, known for decades as 2 Columbus Circle, was designed by Edward Durell Stone, one of America’s most prolific architects, and built in 1964. (...)
The former Huntington Hartford Gallery of Modern Art, known for decades as 2 Columbus Circle, was designed by Edward Durell Stone, one of America’s most prolific architects, and built in 1964. A proponent of Modern architecture from the early days of his career, Stone developed a new approach that retained the function-driven space of Modernism but abandoned its austere, industrial-based aesthetic in favor of rich materials and classical ornamentation. Built as the only structure to follow the curve of Columbus Circle, the building’s white marble façade and modest scale was an exceptional transition to the open space of Central Park. Gleaming between its larger, darker high-rise neighbors, 2 Columbus Circle punctuated the vista from the north and exhibited the qualities of good urbanism. Commissioned to house the personal art collection of philanthropist Huntington Hartford, the building was controversial throughout its history and closed in just five years. The City of New York, owner of the building since 1980, utilized the building for many functions including housing the Department of Cultural Affairs. Eventually, it was sold to the Museum of Art and Design, which remodeled the exterior façade resulting in the removal of the distinctive marble cladding and ornamentation.
