Photo Credit: Roving Rube. Viewpoint: 38th St. and 5th Ave.; 2/17/02 1:09 PM.

Notes (Roving Rube): This building, 425 Fifth Avenue, has its own website -- 425FifthAvenue.com; "still under construction", ha, ha -- and a name brand designer architect in Michael Graves (also known for designing Target tea kettles).

Developer Trevor Davis: "The fact is that my building is going to become one of the Three Sisters, along with the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building," Mr. Davis said. "This isn't grandiose. This is reality. It's going to penetrate the skyline. It will change every postcard of New York City." (Quoted in "Condos on the Rise", by Tracie Roxhon, New York Times, 7/20/01)

A bold comparison. So far, this building merits it in that is tall -- 67 stories -- and located sort of in the middle of the other two.

But it's so skinny! If the ESB is Shaquille O'Neal, and the Chrysler is Michael Jordan, then the Rube would say this building is looking like a Manute Bol. Yes, it can block shots, but can it score?

In Context shows the planned nighttime lighting, which could indeed invite comparisons with illustrious neighbors.

In Alternate View, of a model in the sales office up the street, we see an ingenious if slightly scary oddity -- the tower is not centered over the base!

Detail is the billboard on front of the building showing what your lifestyle will be like here -- from left to right: lying in bed laughing over how good you have it; sure you are still in a rush but now you can walk everywhere; your magical 1940's B&W view of the ESB; your office meetings will be more casual and relaxed either here or wherever; and in the whole floor pool you will be contemplatively abstracted, at one with the water.

Two of the Rube's tour guides have made the same comment about Michael Graves: that his buildings look better as watercolor drafts then in reality. The Rube thinks that means that they are little too "precious" or delicate in conception. As a test, he tried applying to this photo the watercolor effect in PhotoShop, but it looked pretty much the same.