The Crescent (Dallas)

The Crescent
General information
Type Commercial offices, mixed-use
Location 200 Crescent Court
Dallas, Texas
Coordinates 32°47′37″N 96°48′14″W / 32.79372°N 96.80394°W / 32.79372; -96.80394Coordinates: 32°47′37″N 96°48′14″W / 32.79372°N 96.80394°W / 32.79372; -96.80394
Construction started 1982
Completed 1986
Cost Estimated $400 million
Height
Roof 76.0537 m (249.520 ft)
Technical details
Floor count 19
Floor area 1,134,826 square feet (100,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect Johnson/Burgee Architects
References
[1]


The Crescent 2016


The Crescent® is a unique, luxury, mixed-use development located in the upscale neighborhood of Uptown Dallas. It consists of 1,134,826 gross square feet of office space and a 164,696 gross square feet atrium complex used for both retail shops and office space. The project heralded as “a celebration of art, history and architecture”, was designed by world renowned architect Philip Johnson along with John Burgee and Dallas-based Shepherd & Boyd. The Crescent's facade of Indiana limestone and filigreed iron grillwork create a timeless design of quality and outstanding visibility from any point in the Dallas Central Business District. The 11-acre complex was completed in 1986 and renovated in 2016. The structure has 1,134,826 square feet (100,000 m2) of office space in three office towers, the Hotel Crescent Court, (formerly Rosewood Crescent Hotel), and an upscale shopping center including department store Stanley Korshak.[2]

History

The Crescent Construction


In the early 1980s Dallas developer Caroline Hunt and Rosewood Corp. purchased several blocks of old automobile dealerships north of downtown Dallas with plans to create a grand mixed-use development.[3] Excavation began with one of the largest holes on record, creating a 5-level, 4,100 space underground parking facility.[4] The development was one of the most expensive ever constructed in Dallas with an estimated cost of $400 million.[5] Opening in 1986 with a gala event, the complex initially struggled to attract tenants during a depressed economy. It's elegant appointments and location in the center of the (then) transitioning Uptown neighborhood attracted multiple financial firms and upscale retailers (moving the center of the financial industry from Main Street to Uptown). The Crescent is sometimes credited for setting the quality level for much of the surrounding neighborhood, and today commands some of the highest office rents in Dallas.[6][7] In 2014 plans were announced to transform and update the exterior of the building, resulting in more park space along with retail and office upgrades.[8]


Design


The Crescent® represents the finest in design, materials and execution, by Philip Johnson and John Burgee. The Crescent's neo-French classical design was meant to evoke historic architecture of Galveston on a massive scale.[9] Set in a crescent-shaped contour, The Crescent is configured with the high-rise Office Towers at its southern tip and the low-rise Atrium at the apex. The design allows customers to travel from building to building while remaining within a unified complex. The elegant gardens encase the walkway to The Atrium that enhance the project’s landscaping, and offer Crescent visitors a pleasant atmosphere in which to congregate.

The complex comprises several structures:

The entire complex is composed of Indiana limestone. The mansard slate roofs, grillwork and limestone create a facade distinct from the typical Dallas skyscraper. The Crescent Office Towers are composed of a 19-story structure flanked by two contiguous 18-story companions. Each floor of the Office Towers features exterior balconies with decorative filigreed grillwork. Windows are insulated, double-pane, heat reflective clear glass set in anodized aluminum frames. The buildings are framed with an extensive landscape of oak trees, shrubs, potted plants and seasonal color along the perimeter and courtyard area.

The building lobby areas are finished in ten different types of marble, and covering the complex is the largest cut slate roof in the world (250,000 tiles installed by skilled craftsmen).[10][11] The exterior is adorned with $6,000,000 worth of ornamental cast aluminum metal used on balconies, trellises and railings.[12]

Artwork

During the construction of The Crescent®, much time and research went into locating and buying the artwork for the building lobbies. The intent was to create not only a professional environment but also one that would be memorable to customers and guests.

100 Lobby - North Side


100 Lobby North Side


The contemporary oil painting in this lobby is by Massimo Pulini and named Balthazar Per Guidum Voltantem Maximus Pulinius Somniavit. Mr. Pulini said, "In my project, I have chosen to make a Conversion of Mary Magdalene from a work by Guido Cagnacci, meet a "Reading Woman" from Baldassarre Franceschini called the Volterrano. The two superimposed figures always coexist in every work of mine, two styles and two techniques, which meet, talk, and which interfere with each other. The main motive of my painting is never an event to represent, but is the meeting between two represented events and the mystery which can emerge from this meeting. While the two women in the painting talk about the fight between good and evil, the moment in which the angel drives out the devil is visualized."


100 & 300 Lobbies - North Side


Howard Ben Tre


Howard Ben Tre was the artist who cast the glass benches in these lobbies. His objective was to create, in working with the Interior Architect, a park-like environment inside the lobby to offer to the public a human-scale environment, in which to linger. Each circle of benches functions as a focal point and landmark within the expanse of its lobby, personalizing the space and providing a natural meeting place. Patinaed gold leaf is used for surfacing the structural brass because it makes a rich, warm decorative counterpoint to the deep tones of the granite floors. The patina imbues the gold leaf with a sense of history and aging and refers to the style and atmosphere of the Renaissance period. The forms of the cast glass convey solidity and permanence. The benches are located on the directional axes of the lobbies and in a symmetrical relation to the patterning of the inlaid granite floor."



100 & 300 Lobbies - North Side

Concrete Platforms and Colums by Brad Goldberg


The concrete platforms and columns are by artist Brad Goldberg. He sees his work as a fusion between sculpture, the landscape and the built environment. Sculptures are seen not as isolated objects, but rather as spirit-creating components of larger spatial experiences. The artist said, "A cultural response is a possible way in which to root the symbolic purpose of a site-specific work and to create a meaningful sense of place. This notion is of particular interest to me as it is certainly part of my overall quest." Mr. Goldberg has degrees in sculpture and landscape architecture and currently resides in Dallas where he keeps his studio.


200 Lobby - North and South Sides

A sketch and oil painting by Italian artist Carlo Maria Mariani are on the walls of the 200 lobby. Mr. Mariani first provided the sketch displayed in the south lobby for approval before beginning work on the painting. The oil painting was completed in 1988 and is named Exalatio Intellectus. The poet in this painting is symbolized by his crown of laurel leaves, and the tortoise is considered to be the mediator between heaven and earth, or a symbol of immortality. The artist considers himself a conceptual artist who used the representational mode to present the viewer with intellectual paradoxes. Mariani was born in Rome where he studied at the Accademia Di Belle Arte, and he now lives in New York.


300 Lobby - North Side
The oil painting The Apotheosis of the Poet by Alberto Abate is displayed in this lobby. All the figures in this painting have symbolic functions. Mr. Abate states, "The human representation is that of the protagonist, that is somehow the image of the artist himself. The mask he wears allows the artist to become an odyssean Hero of the unconscious self. The three aspects of femininity are represented by the veiled woman, who refers to the mystery of formal Beauty which the artist must reveal. The second aspect is represented by the armed Athena, who is the warrior power of Knowledge, and heroes are devoted to her. The third aspect is that of Hera, who is the Great Nurse."

200 Lobby - South Side

Located in this lobby is the statue Apollo and Daphne by Paolo Borghi. In the Greek myth of Apollo and Daphne, it is Cupid who initiated the trouble between the fair Daphne and the eternally youthful Apollo. In this myth, Daphne eventually grows so weary of Apollo's attention, that she prays her beauty be taken away. Her father, Peneus, the River God, transforms her to a tree. Her hair becomes leaves, her body a trunk and her feet roots in the ground. Apollo claims her anyway and takes her leaves as his crown. Since eternal youth is his, she will never die. The artist adapted this myth for The Crescent®. Daphne as a bay laurel tree undergoes a second transformation. As she receives the Sun God Apollo's rays, she becomes the moon, the opposite of Apollo. Borghi writes, "Daphne is taken from Mother Earth like a rising moon - she is the mirror into which Apollo throws his own light."

Renovation

The Crescent Uptown Dallas


2016 marks The Crescent's 30th anniversary, as well as the completion of $33 Million in renovations to the development. The Beck Group, the general contractor that built The Crescent, along with Staffelbach Design Associates, ensured that the renovations maintained Philip Johnson design. Renovations include a new storefront for retail outlet, Stanley Korshak, and new retail includes:

Moxie's Grill & Bar

Shake Shack

*Ascencion Coffee

Centered in the Atrium Courtyard, surrounded by outdoor seating, a beautiful reflection pool has replaced the three tiered water feature creating a more inviting atmosphere for people to congregate.

The Crescent has recruited The Office of James Burnett, who crafted the award-winning Klyde Warren Park, to create the landscape design, which includes turning unused areas of the complex into intimate spots for relaxation and fun.

The renovations reflect the progression in Uptown Dallas trending to a more walkable, urban landscape.

References

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