Hudson Yards's $200M 'Vessel' is on the rise

The centerpiece of the public square at Hudson Yards is beginning to take shape, and what will eventually be a mile’s worth of climbable stairs is now a few stories above ground (a representative for Related informed us that the structure is at level six).

Designed by Thomas Heatherwick, who won a bid to create the sculpture in 2013, this “public landmark,” will consist of 154 interconnected staircases and be located at the center of a five-acre public park designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects.

Related Companies, which is co-developing the Hudson Yards megaproject with the Oxford Properties Group, hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the structure in April, and this sculpture has already come a long way since.

Heatherwick previously stated that the sculpture was inspired by his days at art school in London, and from the design of Indian step wells. Mayor Bill de Blasio has previously described it as a “must-see and a must-walk for all New Yorkers." Vessel will top out by the end of this year, and will be complete in early 2019.

• First look at Hudson Yards’s enormous, interactive ‘public landmark’ [Curbed]
• British Artist Will Create A 'New Icon' For NYC In Hudson Yards [Curbed]
• Hudson Yards construction update: a status check on the Manhattan megaproject [Curbed]