Infrastructural renderings that reference historical entities, almost always manage to cast a deeper impact than architecture designed to fulfil a hedonistic image. It is, after all, these references and details that humanise stoic edifices. Infusing architecture with such details becomes even more pertinent when designing structures within neighbourhoods that already carry a distinguishing stylistic language and identity. Not doing so would result in the construction of an anomalous structure that would appear out of place and enhance the pervasive alienation that one experiences in urban agglomerates.

New York-based Morris Adjmi, a contemporary architect who pays special attention to the contextual vocabulary when designing structures, recently designed and built The Grand Mulberry, a twenty-condominium residential building located in the heart of Little Italy. The project, undertaken under the helm of his eponymous architectural studio, Morris Adjmi Architects or MA, lies at the intersection of the Grand and Mulberry Streets in New York, USA. The facade design of the structure bears a pixelated mirage of the Italianate tenements that are found in the neighbourhood. In referencing tangible entities from an ethnic enclave that absorbed mass immigration from Italy in the 19^th century, Adjmi manages to pay homage to the community and carry their legacy forward in the contemporary mould of The Grand Mulberry.

“Analysing many tenements in the area we came up with the idea of juxtaposing a rigorous modern facade with a sort of a ghost image of a typical tenement building. This illusion or memory of a historic facade was made of hand-moulded domed bricks; they read as dots or pixels and reveal an abstract representation of a building that might have stood there at one point in the past. I like this narrative and the references that make buildings' legacies. It is a new building that coexists with the history of its place,” Adjmi shares.

The custom-profiled bricks are arranged on the facade in a manner such that they trace the fenestrations and details of typical Italian tenements in the area. These patterns cross and overlap—albeit not congruently—the structural fenestrations of The Grand Mulberry. “The Grand Mulberry’s unique façade features two overlapping fenestration patterns—a spectral reference to a hypothetical historical tenement building with traditional window details rendered in hand-moulded brick, overlaid with a rigorous grid of minimalist punched windows organised to maximise light and air within the multifamily building’s residential units. This approach melds past and present, nodding to tradition while also reflecting a modern way of living today,” the studio shares.

The pattern imprinted on the structure’s facade is inspired by the tripartite facade that traditionally adorned Italianate tenement buildings. These tripartite facades, comprising a base, middle and top, bore different details and were assembled using distinct brickwork in each portion. The Grand Mulberry, too, consists of a band on the building’s base that extends up to two floors; pediment windows from the third to fifth floors; and arched windows and a cornice around the structural fenestrations on floor six. The vertical edges of the structure, on the other hand, bear the imprints of quoins. The red-orange hue of the structure further honours the presence of the red brick buildings found in the neighbourhood.

While the residential architecture emulates features from the yesteryear, it also retains its contemporary mien—in its form, its interior design and in the materials utilised to build the structure. The stacking of the hand-moulded domed bricks is modern, too. Each brick was carefully positioned within the double-stacked running bond coursing to present the illusion of an Italianate facade.

"We explored numerous options for how to represent that image before arriving at the idea of using a dome shape, on the brick’s surface. This brick, even though it was entirely custom, was, in fact, a cost-effective way of building the facade,” the American architect shares. In order to avoid cutting bricks on the field, as many as ten custom shapes were created.

The interior design of the residential structure, too, bears inspiration from the context. Several details, such as the black and white mosaic floors and the brass detailing, bear semblance to designs found in Little Italy’s historic residential buildings. On the other hand, the Italian cream lacquered cabinetry, gray marble counters, and the terrazzo flooring imbue the 20 residences with modern elegance. On the rear end of the structure, the seventh floor is cut out to create a terrace space for the penthouse unit, which faces both, the Grand Street and the Mulberry Street. Both the penthouse and the building's bulkhead are wrapped in medium gray standing seam metal panels that create a subtle contrast of material and colour. This allows these elements to stand alone but not detract from the brick façade below.