Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice

Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice
42nd Street facade
Map
Alternative namesFord Foundation Building
General information
Architectural styleLate Modernism
Address320 East 43rd Street
Town or cityManhattan, New York
CountryUnited States
Coordinates40°44′59″N 73°58′16″W / 40.74972°N 73.97111°W / 40.74972; -73.97111
Construction started1963
Completed1967
InauguratedDecember 8, 1967
Renovated2016–2018
Cost$16 million[1]
ClientFord Foundation
OwnerFord Foundation
Height174 feet (53 m)
Technical details
Structural systemconcrete and steel frame
Floor count12
Design and construction
Architect(s)Kevin Roche
Architecture firmRoche Dinkeloo
Structural engineerJohn Dinkeloo
Main contractorTurner Construction
Awards and prizesAlbert S. Bard Civic Award
Twenty-five Year Award
References
DesignatedOctober 21, 1997
Reference no.1969, 1970

The Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice (also known as 321 East 42nd Street, 320 East 43rd Street, or the Ford Foundation Building) is a 12-story office building in East Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Designed by architect Kevin Roche and engineering partner John Dinkeloo in the late modernist style, the building was one of the first that Roche-Dinkeloo produced after they became heads of Eero Saarinen's firm.

The building is designed as a glass-and-steel cube held up by piers made of concrete and clad with Dakota granite. The main entrance is along 43rd Street. A second entrance on 42nd Street leads to a large public atrium, the first such space in an office building in Manhattan. The atrium contains landscaping from Dan Kiley and includes plants, shrubs, trees, and vines. Most of the building's offices are north and west of the atrium and are visible from other offices.

The building was commissioned for the Ford Foundation, then the largest private foundation in the United States, after Henry Heald became foundation president. The Ford Foundation Building was announced in 1963 and completed in 1968 on the former site of the Hospital for the Ruptured and Crippled. Between 2015 and 2018, the Ford Foundation Building underwent a major renovation and restoration project, and it was renamed the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice. The Ford Foundation Building has been critically acclaimed for its design, both after its completion and after the renovation. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the building and its atrium as city landmarks in 1997.

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