A Parallel Nature, 2026
JPMorgan Chase Headquarters, New York, NY
Barre Gray Granite
Each wall: 54’-0” x 49’-0” x 1’-8
Photography: Nigel Young, courtesy Foster+Partners
A Parallel Nature takes its inspiration from the very bedrock found below the island of Manhattan, introducing a familiar natural geologic landscape in the heart of midtown Manhattan.
Historic photographs of the excavation of midtown Manhattan when they were building Grand Central Station revealed the bedrock below the streets – and I started to think about how to connect to that notion of grounding the artwork in the geology of the area.
The artwork brings a feeling of the natural world to the heart of Manhattan. The idea to find an actual rockface in Central Park became a genesis for the work. We located one such rockface- just north of the central park zoo- off of 5th avenue and 67th street. We scanned and then analyzed the outcropping and then translated that data into the two rock faces that form the North and South walls of the artwork.
A Parallel Nature, as its name implies- is an artwork that neither tries to perfectly recreate nature – nor feel architecturally fabricated- it is a work that makes ambiguous the line between the natural and the manmade. And this tension is revealed with the two edges of each wall. As you enter the building the edges are decidedly saw cut and manmade- whereas the outer edges facing the street are kept with a live more naturalized edge.
I wanted to create an artwork that could dialogue with the largess of the JP Morgan Chase Headquarters building- yet take on its own presence, character, and scale.
Related Press:
Levere, Jane L. Maya Lin Connects Nature to a New Manhattan Skyscraper and Beyond. New York Times (May 10, 2026)
Artist:
Maya Lin
MLS team; Zachary Fish, Katharine Fritz, James Ewart, Eefee Wu, Raven Hopgood
Commissioned by:
JPMorgan Chase; James Shea, Spencer Isaacs
Advisors (Developer Partner):
Tishman Speyer; Bob Pratt, Lesley Campbell, Christopher DeLuca
Architect for 270 Park:
Foster+Partners; Norman Foster, Jeremy Dworken, Nigel Dancey, Ken Smith
Construction Managers:
AECOM Tishman
Engineering:
Atelier One; Chris Matthews
Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates
Stone Fabricator:
Quarra Stone Company; James Durham, Alex MArshall, Brian Smith, America Cely, Frank meier, Ramsey Bartlett
Steel Fabricator:
Coenen Mechanical
Lead Horticulturalist:
Horticulture of the Highline; Richard Hayden
Landscape Architect Consultant:
Object+Field; Cecil Howell
Landscape Installers, Contractors:
Blondie’s Treehouse; Howard K. Freilich, Stefanos Lenas, Zachary J. Madarash, Matthew Bowman
Atlantic Exterior Wall Systems
Consultants:
Jeffrey Deitch
Fluidity Design Consultants
Tillotson Design Associates
Par Plumbing
John Civetta & Sons
Delta Fountains
E-J Electric
