Welcome to the Archives of the Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation. The purpose of this online database is to function as a tool for scholars, students, architects, preservationists, journalists and other interested parties. The archive consists of photographs, slides, articles and publications from Rudolph’s lifetime; physical drawings and models; personal photos and memorabilia; and contemporary photographs and articles.
Unless otherwise noted, all images and drawings are copyright © The Estate of Paul Rudolph and The Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation. Please speak with a representative of the Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation to get permission to use any drawings or photos. Drawings, sketches and other materials produced by Rudolph’s architectural office at the Library of Congress are maintained there for preservation, but the intellectual property rights belong to the Paul Rudolph Estate and Ernst Wagner, founder of the Paul Rudolph Heritage Foundation.
LOCATION
Address: 246 East 58th Street
City: New York
State: New York
Zip Code: 10022
Nation: United States
STATUS
Type: Commercial
Status: Built
TECHNICAL DATA
Date(s): 1988-1992; 2007-2015
Site Area: 2,008 s.f.
Floor Area: 9,438 s.f.
Height:
Floors (Above Ground): 6
Building Cost:
PROFESSIONAL TEAM
Client: Ernst Wagner / Paul Rudolph
Architect: Paul Rudolph (1998-1992); Mark Squeo (2007-2015)
Rudolph Staff: Donald Luckenbill, Job Captain (1989-1990); Mark Squeo, Job Captain (1990-1991); Kevin Gannon, Drawings (1990-1991); Bill Telesco, Job Supervisor (1992); Ronald Chin, Administrative (1991-1992); Rene Haberstich, Administrative (1991)
Associate Architect: Donald Luckenbill
Landscape:
Structural: Peter Galdi (1988); Weidlinger Associates (1988-1993)
Structural Steel: Marino (1991)
Soils: Raamot (1989)
MEP: Harold Rosen Associates (1989)
Waterproofing: Baerman (1990)
QS/PM:
Expeditor: Richard Potofsky (1989-1990), William Vitacco (1990-1992)
SUPPLIERS
Contractor: Paul Rudolph (1988-1993); Phoenix Builders & Command Contractors (1989-1990)
Subcontractor(s):
Modulightor
Rudolph creates the Modulightor lighting company on August 03, 1976. The company’s office is located in the model shop of Rudolph’s architectural office at 54 West 57th Street in New York City.
The project is to design a showroom and headquarters for the Modulightor lighting company, as well as a pair of duplex apartments to be rented as a source of investment income.
Paul Rudolph and Ernst Wagner purchase the property on February 24, 1989 for $1,750,000 USD
Richard Potofsky is the project’s expediter from 1989-8/21/1990
William Vitacco is the project’s expediter from 7/16/1990-1992
The project converted into a multi-purpose building, with the showroom on the ground floor, fixture fabrication workshop & storage in the three cellar levels, and Paul Rudolph’s architectural office on the 2nd floor. A residential duplex, designed by Rudolph, occupies floors 3 & 4, a second duplex on 5 & 6, and the rooftop at level 7 (with an elevated “widow-walk” as a top-most 8th level.)
The objects in Paul’s collection at 23 Beekman Place were, after his passing, moved into the Modulightor Building and they are now displayed throughout its many levels.
Floors 5 and 6 are added from 2007-2015 by a former Rudolph employee using Rudolph’s preliminary sketches for an unbuilt 9-story design.
On October 06, 2017 the building is featured as the ‘Building of the Day’ as part of Archtober hosted by the AIA New York chapter.
In 2018, the building is featured in the Open House New York Weekend.
“Rudolph did hundreds of facade studies for this modest building ... He put the same intensity in spatial exploration into small projects as in the large ones. And when he was designing for himself, he didn’t want to know what it was costing.”
“Paul was most interested in the dynamics of a space that is always spiraling.”
“Paul was fascinated with how lighting integral to a space could animate it and transform the whole psychological effect — he thought light was architecture’s fourth dimension. With the miniaturization of lighting, we formed Modulightor, and he was always experimenting with this new technology. In one space he designed, he mirrored the walls and ceilings, and when he dimmed the lights, it felt as if you were in the Milky Way.”
DRAWINGS - Design Drawings / Renderings
DRAWINGS - Construction Drawings
DRAWINGS - Shop Drawings
PHOTOS - Project Model
PHOTOS - During Construction
PHOTOS - Completed Project
PHOTOS - Current Conditions
LINKS FOR MORE INFORMATION
www.modulightor.com the website of the lighting company created by Paul Rudolph that is located in the building
Modulightor Building on the DocomomoUS website
Modulightor Building on the Iconic Houses website
Modulightor Building on the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project website
Modulightor Building on the Culture Now website
Modulightor Building on the Eat Drink See Architecture website
Modulightor Building on the A+I Explorers Club webpage
RELATED DOWNLOADS
PROJECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
Andrew Mikhael. Modulightor House - Paul Rudolph. 27 Nov. 2018, https://www.andrewmikhael.com/blog/2018/9/21/modulightor-house-paul-rudolph.
Apoorva Tadepalli. “Inside Paul Rudolph’s Iconic Modulightor Building in NYC.” Untapped Cities, 11 Dec. 2017, https://untappedcities.com/2017/12/11/inside-paul-rudolphs-iconic-modulightor-building-nyc/.
Fred A. Bernstein. “Paul Rudolph’s Legacy Lives on Through His Outstanding Buildings.” Galerie, Oct. 2018, https://www.galeriemagazine.com/paul-rudolph-architect-100-birthday/.
“House of Light.” Elements of Living, Mar. 2006.
Jason Farago. “Paul Rudolph at 100: The Mischief Maker in a New Light.” New York Times, 20 Dec. 2018.
Jenna Milliner-Waddell. “10 Fabulous Photos From ‘New York Behind Closed Doors’ To Inspire Small Space Living.” Elle Decor, Sept. 2017.
Joseph Giovannini. “An Architect’s Last Word.” The New York Times, 8 July 2004.
Lauren Gallow. “The Modulightor Building.” Cereal Magazine, Sept. 2021, https://readcereal.com/modulightor/.
Melissa Minton. “Bottega Veneta’s Latest Campaign Features Lauren Hutton, Joan Smalls, and an NYC Landmark.” Architectural Digest, Jan. 2017, https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/bottega-venettas-summer-2017-campaign.
Michelle Cohen. “Modernist Must-See: Tour the Upper East Side’s Paul Rudolph-Designed Modulightor Building.” 6sqft, 29 July 2019, https://www.6sqft.com/modernist-must-see-tour-the-upper-east-sides-paul-rudolph-designed-modulightor-building/.
Miguel Llona and Patrick Kasingsing. “Monument Man.” Kanto - Creative Corners, May 2021, https://kanto.com.ph/spaces/paul-rudolph/.
Patricia Zohn. “Paul Rudolph’s Modulightor Building: A Hidden Masterpiece.” CultureZohn, 7 Oct. 2017, https://www.culturezohn.com/culturedpearls/2017/10/7/paul-rudolphs-modulightor-building-a-hidden-masterpiece.
Paul Rudolph: Explorations in Modern Architecture, 1976-1993. National Institute for Architectural Education, 1993.
Polly Devlin. New York: Places to Write Home About. Pimpernel Press Limited, 2017.
Roberto De Alba. Paul Rudolph: The Late Work. Princeton Architectural Press, 2003.
Sarah Cascone. “Bottega Veneta Turns to Modernist Architecture Gem for Todd Hido Photoshoot.” Artnet, 6 Jan. 2017, https://news.artnet.com/art-world/bottega-veneta-hido-paul-rudolph-805148.
Timothy Rohan. The Architecture of Paul Rudolph. Yale University Press, 2014.
William Menking. “Manhattan Masterpiece.” The Architects’ Journal, Oct. 2004.