Head to New York and there’s definitely one address which you’ll want to check out. 8 Spruce Street sounds unassuming, but what sits there certainly isn’t.

The Big Apple’s newest resident is a gleaming 870ft tower which stands an impressive 76 storeys high. But what makes it stand out in the city which epitomises the skyscraper era is its ‘ripple’ design.

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Like the surface of a swimming pool, the waves of the steel and glass exterior reflect sunlight from every angle, altering the appearance of the building throughout the day.

Undulating curved steel and smooth lines

It’s no surprise to learn that it is the work of renowned architect Frank Gehry, whose vision also gave the world the Guggenheim Museum in Spain and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA, both of which feature Gehry’s signature style – undulating curved steel and smooth lines combined to breathtaking effect.

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Tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere

‘New York by Frank Gehry’ as 8 Spruce Street is also known is the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere. But it isn’t just a unique place to live, it also serves a public purpose. Beneath its glittering façade are young children hard at work in what is certainly one of the coolest schools on the block. Fall ill in this area of the city and it will be here you’ll end up as the site of the New York Downtown Hospital, and there are even shops to browse at the building’s base.

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Visually stunning & distinctly different from the crowd – 8 Spruce Street, NYC

The unveiling of Gehry’s latest creation, in the same year that marks the 10^th anniversary of 9/11, undoubtedly marks the beginning of a new age of skyscrapers in the city.

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Whilst there have been other tall towers opening their doors in recent months, none have created the same buzz, or are quite as visually stunning, as 8 Spruce Street.

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To Gehry, producing something so distinctly different from the crowd for what was his first residential commission in New York City clearly wasn’t a tall order.

In the world of Manhattan architecture, things are definitely looking up.