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A large artificial rock climbing wall stands unfinished on a muddy construction site, its exposed blue paneling and metal framework evoking Maya Lin A Parallel Nature. The background shows flat farmland under a partly cloudy sky.

A Parallel Nature

ARTIST: Maya Lin

LOCATION: 270 Park Avenue, Midtown Manhattan

MATERIAL: Barre Grey Granite and structural steel

Maya Lin’s A Parallel Nature is a large-scale façade installation at the base of JPMorgan Chase’s new global headquarters at 270 Park Avenue. Inspired by the Schist formations found in and around Central Park, the work translates geological strata into an architectural surface, anchoring the building to its site through material, scale, and form.
 
The project was realized through close coordination between the artist, engineers, fabricators, and installation teams. Over a three-month iterative design and modeling process, the overall artistic vision was translated into a fully coordinated digital model, allowing the work to be divided into individual elements that met structural, material, fabrication, and installation requirements. Due to the non-uniform geometry of every stone element, a custom, ultra-tight tolerance steel support system was developed to accommodate the complex forms while enabling precise coordination across disciplines.
Large, roughly cut granite blocks are stacked unevenly outdoors on bare ground under a cloudy sky, reminiscent of Maya Lin’s A Parallel Nature. Some blocks bear ridged surfaces from machinery. Sparse vegetation is visible at the base.

Key Contributions

Quarra provided comprehensive design-assist, digital modeling, material sourcing, fabrication coordination, and installation support for Parallel Nature. This included translating the artist’s vision into a fully coordinated 3D model; developing a custom, ultra-tight tolerance steel support system for 239 unique stone elements; sourcing and custom quarrying oversized granite block; optimizing block utilization through detailed nesting studies to minimize waste; executing CNC rough machining followed by hand finishing to achieve the intended surface texture; performing full-scale mock-ups, dry-lays, and high-precision laser scanning for quality control and systems coordination; and supporting a rapid, adjustment-free installation process through pre-engineered precision and close coordination with the project team.

Stone elements were rough-machined using large-format CNC equipment and subsequently hand-worked to emulate the natural stone texture central to the artist’s intent. Full-scale dry-lays of larger assemblies were used to study surface transitions and ensure continuity across adjacent elements. To meet the strict tolerances required by the support system, a local steel fabricator was engaged under a rigorous quality control and verification process, allowing assemblies to be fabricated within 1/16” tolerance.

A full-scale mock-up of the complete rain-screen assembly was constructed to test system integration and tolerance alignment prior to site installation. High-precision laser scans of individual components and assemblies verified dimensional accuracy and identified potential interferences while components remained in the shop. This process ensured that each stone element could be installed directly into its mounting brackets without on-site adjustment, enabling the installation of all 239 pieces within an extremely tight construction schedule while maintaining uniform 3/8” joints across highly complex geometries.

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