A living room with a lot of furniture.
On the eighth floor of the 46-story Maybury, a 453-unit luxury rental building in New York with exterior and interior architecture by Handel Architects and FFE in the public and amenity spaces, model units, and initial leasing office by Mazzarini & Co., the resident lounge features a variety of flexible gathering areas inspired by nature, with Caterina Moretti’s Loto ottomans standing before a custom marble cocktail table that’s surrounded by chairs and sofa by Jake Arnold and a live fig tree, all under aluminum Vapor ceiling panels evocative of a forest canopy.

Inside The Maybury, A Residential Tower In Hudson Yards

Within the crowded New York City skyline, it can be difficult for a new tower to stand out. In Hudson Yards, a recently built Manhattan neighborhood, the Maybury, a residential building, focuses less on facade vanity and more on providing a top-notch living experience. Not that its 46-story, bronzed masonry-inspired exterior doesn’t handsomely differentiate itself from its glass-walled neighbors. And the same can be said of the interiors of the 453-unit luxury building, targeting cosmopolitan millennials with such tag lines as “Live in full bloom” and “rentals for the sophisticated urbanite.” That’s because the two firms behind the project, Handel Architects and Mazzarini & Co., tapped into nature, albeit through a metropolitan lens.

“The facade is formulated to filter the city, with perforated panels that veil the streetscape while letting in softened daylight, creating patterns that recall sunlight through leaves,” describes Krista Armstrong, a Handel associate principal who codesigned the 435,000-square-foot building’s exterior and interior architecture, including the apartments, with founder and managing partner, Gary Handel. “Stepping into the lobby feels like arriving on the forest floor, with stone pathways underfoot and light filtering down as through a canopy,” she adds, referring to its travertine floor tile and aluminum screen laser-cut with an abstract floral pattern, all contributing to an arboreal first impression.

Handel Architects and Mazzarini & Co. Tap Into Nature For A High-Rise

A living room with a lot of furniture.
On the eighth floor of the 46-story Maybury, a 453-unit luxury rental building in New York with exterior and interior architecture by Handel Architects and FFE in the public and amenity spaces, model units, and initial leasing office by Mazzarini & Co., the resident lounge features a variety of flexible gathering areas inspired by nature, with Caterina Moretti’s Loto ottomans standing before a custom marble cocktail table that’s surrounded by chairs and sofa by Jake Arnold and a live fig tree, all under aluminum Vapor ceiling panels evocative of a forest canopy. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.

Biophilic motifs continue throughout the building’s four levels and more than 20,000 square feet of amenities, which include a two-story coworking space with upholstered banquettes and a coffee bar on the fourth and fifth floors, a generous resident lounge and state-of-the-art gym that open to a terrace and occupy all of eight, and a penthouse sky lounge, their FFE by Dan Mazzarini and Caroline Fields, founder and creative director and senior designer, respectively, of Mazzarini & Co., which also outfitted the Maybury’s three model units and initial leasing office.

Back in the lobby sitting area, for example, accompanying the stone floor and petal-like screen is Mazzarini’s custom curved sectional upholstered in a wool blend in an Isles of Pine colorway. In the resident lounge, Handel designed treelike millwork to surround columns and screened the ceiling in bronzed aluminum panels that evoke dappled light in a forest. Mazzarini’s furniture selections, meanwhile, complement this effect without taking it too literally. “Texturally, we didn’t do anything specifically leafy, but some pieces have more of a veining to them,” Mazzarini says, referencing seating that includes a 162-inch-long custom sofa alongside chairs by Jake Arnold for Crate and Barrel and a hefty, actually veined marble cocktail table. In addition to these more traditional gathering areas grounded by patterned wool rugs and other natural materials, the open plan includes a section of terrazzo-topped café tables tucked to one side for more quiet meetings and an oak communal table for group activities. To assure the space’s longevity, even with daily use, “We played with scale and chose all hospitality-standard finishes, even though this is a residential project,” Mazzarini continues.

Get Lost In This Residential Tower Full Of Hidden Spaces

A living room with a large plant in the center.
In the travertine-tiled lobby, Handel’s aluminum screen dapples sunlight onto the sectional sofa, both custom; the marble-based Lato side table is by &Tradition. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.

With more than 60 percent of Manhattan employers requiring a hybrid office schedule, the teams did plan for these common areas to be used daily. “Today’s urban renter is looking for more than a place to eat and sleep. They want a sense of community,” Handel states. “The amenities were conceptualized as a ‘secret garden,’ a hidden retreat in the fabric of Hudson Yards, where a mix of spaces allows residents to get to know each other but also work undisturbed.”

They’re also meant to connect residents to the city itself, bringing the seasonal hues of its beloved parks skyward into the tower. “To keep the experience new and inspiring, each floor draws from a different New York season—soft greens and crisp whites evoking spring on one level, richer oranges, browns, and rust tones suggesting autumn on another—giving residents varied palettes and atmospheres so they can choose the mood that best suits them and never tire of where they work or unwind,” Fields explains. Sunlight is a major design element, shaped by dramatic drapery and screens, and casting new patterns across the interiors throughout the project.

A living room with a checkered floor and a checkered rug.
The firm also furnished the model units, including the living room of the one-bedroom, with a Belia sectional and wool Jenna rug. Photography by Reid Rolls.

In the studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom model units, Mazzarini, Fields, and their colleagues took the same color approach, pulling nature-inspired blues, greens, and terra-cottas into the apartments they conceptualized for potential occupants. “We created a strong persona for each one,” Mazzarini says, “but we also tried to show people that these spaces really work for city living” no matter their size. Desks in bedrooms, tables that can serve multiple functions, and furniture arrangements that take advantage of the site’s panoramic views help make the case. For any dinner party, game night, or birthday celebration that requires a larger space, the building’s lounges offer an extension of these homes, just an elevator ride away.

Overall, the Maybury was conceived to support today’s version of 21st-century living. Because development began during the pandemic, when the uncertainty of urban lifestyles loomed large, the project also required some very intentional future-building. But Handel and Mazzarini seem to have gotten their predictions just right. “The past five years have been such a microcosm of then, now, and next,” notes Mazzarini, who’s familiar with such fluctuations from his earlier years working as a retail design director for Ralph Lauren. “I think the ‘next’ is making sure there’s flexibility, so that if we need something different in five or 10 years, there’s a lighter redesign lift. But for the ‘now,’” he adds, “it’s responding to working from home, dining together, and egalitarian thinking, giving the best real estate to the most people.”

Walk Through The Maybury By Handel Architects & Mazzzarini & Co.

A person walking in a room with a wooden table.
Another area of the lounge that’s more conducive to working or dining has an oak communal table, its chairs upholstered in a pattern called Abstraction Outdoor, and custom terrazzo-topped café tables backed by Kimberly George’s fabric-plaster wall art and lit by Bertjan Pot’s Heracleum III Endless pendant fixture. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.
A bedroom with a bed, a chair, and a painting.
Safavieh Couture’s Eduardo bouclé chair pairs with a Danish mid-century cabinet and a sculptural Élan Byrd Saguaro table lamp in the one-bedroom. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A living room with a couch and a chair.
Above a custom sofa, oak forms treelike branches in the lounge. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.
A green marble table with a bowl of green tea on it.
A verdant marble bistro table stands on a wool rug. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.
A staircase with a glass railing and a painting.
In the coworking amenity on floors four and five, Handel tucked a coffee bar under the brass-railed stair and installed IC pendant fixtures by Michael Anastassiades, while Mazzarini selected the Tri table lamp and custom wall piece by BelarteStudio. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.
A city with a lot of tall buildings.
The facade’s aluminum panels are painted to resemble masonry; Photography by Lester Ali.
A room with a table, chairs, and a large picture.
A Toni Toscano photograph overlooks Gaston dining chairs in coworking. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.
A painting on the wall.
Sunbrella’s Sumi upholsters a custom banquette in coworking, under another BelarteStudio artwork. Photography by Adam Kane Macchia.

Pops Of Color Bring The Community Together

A dining room with a table and chairs.
Mazzarini made the initial leasing office as residential and nature-inspired as the rest of the Maybury, including in its conference room, where Flock chairs by Noom face Wabi-Sabi wallpaper. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A bedroom with a bed and a blue wall.
Its bedroom’s color-matched wall paint and custom artwork. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A green chair and a small table in a room.
A vignette in the studio model. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A woman walking past a counter in a store.
The office’s custom walnut tambour reception desk. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A bedroom with a bed and a desk.
Checkered motifs reappear in the two-bedroom model. Its living room is a high-low mix, with a Haller media cabinet and Eames side chair facing a PB Teen Cushy sofa. Photography by Reid Rolls.
A living room with a couch, coffee table, and a television.
Its living room is a high-low mix, with a Haller media cabinet and Eames side chair facing a PB Teen Cushy sofa. Photography by Reid Rolls.
PROJECT TEAM

HANDEL ARCHITECTS: AMAR SEN; JUHEE CHUNG; CAROLINA CLEMENTE. MAZZARINI & CO.: MATTIE OVERMYER; KIMMY JIN. ONE LUX STUDIO: LIGHTING DESIGN. DESIMONE CONSULTING ENGINEERS: STRUCTURAL ENGINEER. COSENTINI ASSOCIATES: MEP. LANGAN ENGINEERING: CIVIL ENGINEER. GER INDUSTRIES: MILLWORK, METALWORK. MONADNOCK CONSTRUCTION: GENERAL CONTRACTOR.

PRODUCT SOURCES

FROM FRONT
ARKTURA: CEILING PANELS (LOUNGE). CRATE & BARREL: SOFA, CHAIRS (LOUNGE), WHITE AND WOOD SIDE CHAIRS (COWORKING). THROUGH 1STDIBS: OTTOMANS (LOUNGE), HEADBOARD (2-BEDROOM MODEL). MARBLE & HOME: CUSTOM COCKTAIL TABLE. CB2: TABLE LAMPS (LOUNGE), BISTRO TABLES (LOUNGE, COWORKING), DESK CHAIR (2-BEDROOM MODEL). PHILIP STEIN DESIGN COLLECTIVE: CUSTOM RUGS (LOUNGE, LOBBY). HAVWOODS: FLOORING (LOUNGE). PRESCOLITE: SCONCES. POTTERY BARN: COMMUNAL TABLE. MOOOI: PENDANT FIXTURE. LULU AND GEORGIA: COMMUNAL TABLE CHAIRS (LOUNGE), SAGE TABLE LAMP (1-BEDROOM MODEL). TRNK NYC: COMMUNAL TABLE LAMP (LOUNGE). SIMPLY TABLES: CUSTOM CAFÉ TABLES (LOUNGE, COWORKING). FICARI: CAFÉ CHAIRS (LOUNGE). RIYA RUGS: CUSTOM RUG. THROUGH ETSY: WALL ART (LOUNGE, 1-BEDROOM MODEL, 2-BEDROOM MODEL), MIRROR TRIO (STUDIO MODEL), COFFEE TABLE (2-BEDROOM MODEL). VISUAL COMFORT: TABLE LAMP (LOUNGE), BEDSIDE LAMP (1-BEDROOM MODEL). WAYFAIR: WOOL RUG (LOUNGE), SWIVEL CHAIRS (LOBBY), SCONCE (2-BEDROOM MODEL). COMPOSITION: CUSTOM BANQUETTE, CUSTOM WHITE SOFA (LOUNGE), CUSTOM SECTIONAL (LOBBY). CIOT: FLOOR TILE (LOBBY). RH: COCKTAIL TABLE (LOBBY). KATHY KUO HOME: WOOD-BACK CHAIR. DESIGN PUBLIC: SIDE TABLE. FLOS: PENDANT FIXTURES (COWORKING). VINTAGE HARDWOOD FLOORING: FLOORING. DUMAIS MADE: TABLE LAMP. BELARTESTUDIO: CUSTOM ARTWORKS. FOUR HANDS: PHOTOGRAPH. VERELLEN: DINING CHAIRS. CARNEGIE FABRICS: BLUE-WHITE BANQUETTE FABRIC. PPG INDUSTRIES: FACADE PANELS (EXTERIOR). SCHUMACHER: WALLPAPER (OFFICE). FOROM SHOP: WHITE CHAIRS. MAIDEN HOME: RED CHAIR. WEST ELM: RUG (OFFICE), DRESSER (2-BEDROOM MODEL). ROVE CONCEPTS: SECTIONAL (1-BEDROOM MODEL). UNION HOME: COCKTAIL TABLE. PERIGOLD: CHAIR, BEDROOM RUG. THROUGH CHAIRISH: CABINET. ALL MODERN: LIVING ROOM RUG. MESONART: FRAMED ART. BIRCH LANE: BED. 4SPACES: BED FABRIC. ZARA HOME: BEDSPREAD. ANTHROPOLOGIE: CHAIR (STUDIO MODEL). ETHNICRAFT: TABLE. SOCIETY SOCIAL: OTTOMAN. ARTSTAR: FRAMED ART. CUAN CONTRACTING CORP.: CUSTOM DESK (LEASING OFFICE). GLOBAL VIEWS: WHITE VASES. SIGN INNOVATIONS: CUSTOM SIGNAGE. ROOM & BOARD: DESK (2-BEDROOM MODEL). NORDIC KNOTS: RUG. INTERIOR ICONS: BEDSIDE LAMP. POSTER CLUB: GREEN WALL ART. PB TEEN: SOFA. USM: MEDIA CABINET. DESIGN WITHIN REACH: EAMES CHAIR. ROUSE HOME: BLUE LAMP. HK LIVING: BLACK-WHITE LAMP. REVIVAL RUGS: RUG.
THROUGHOUT ARC-COM; BURCH; MOKUM TEXTILES; PALLAS TEXTILES; POLLACK: UPHOLSTERY FABRIC. CFD FLORAL: GREENERY. HF DESIGN: MODEL VINYL FLOORING. BENJAMIN MOORE & CO.; PORTOLA PAINTS: PAINT.

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