A Coiled Staircase Breathes Light into a 15-Foot-Wide Manhattan Townhouse

By Dwell @dwell

A view from the bottom of the staircase includes a skylight at the top.

The Piranesian view upwards through the central stair to the top floor skylight.

Architect Space4Architecture

Open floor plans aren’t typically associated with historic buildings, yet that’s just what architects Michele Busiri-Vici and Clementina Ruggieri of Space4Architects achieved through the use of bright walls, white oak woodwork, and a striking central staircase. The riser-less stair uncoils as it descends through the five-story tall building, enabling light from a glazed back facade and skylight to reach even the lowest stories. “The townhouse typology is a challenging project,” the firm says, noting that this project for a couple with two young children “transforms it into something new, while respecting its inherent characteristics: the possibility of having multiple spaces to live in, allowing for a sort of ever-changing way of daily family life.”