Hotel des Artistes is the most prominent of the eight buildings that make up the West 67th Street Artists’ Colony Historic District, in the National Register of Historic Places. It wasn’t the first, but 1 West 67th Street remains the largest of the studio/apartment buildings.
What sets this (and other studio buildings) apart is the double-height studio spaces in each apartment, with double-height windows to give artists ample natural light. Despite appearances, not all of the rooms are double-height. A little architectural sleight-of-hand is involved: Some of the double-height window openings are bisected by a steel panel that mimics a window pane pattern.
The building is a hotel in name only – built with hotel amenities to evade then-current apartment building height restrictions. Apartments originally had no kitchens; residents took their meals in a communal dining room (now the restaurant The Leopard at des Artistes). Other hotel amenities included a theater, a ballroom, and a swimming pool.
Hotel des Artistes has been home to prominent artists, performing artists – and non-artists. It became a co-op in 1970.
Hotel des Artistes Vital Statistics
- Location: 1 West 67th Street at Central Park West
- Year completed: 1918
- Architect: George M. Pollard
- Floors: 18
- Style: Neo-Gothic with Tudor elements
- New York City Landmark: 1990
- National Register of Historic Places: 1985
Hotel des Artistes Recommended Reading
- NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission designation report (Upper West Side / Central Park West Historic District – pg. 173)
- The New York Times Streetscapes/Hotel des Artistes, 1 West 67th Street; Cornerstone Building on a Block of Artists’ Studios (May 14, 2000)
- City Realty review
- StreetEasy NYC listing (includes floor plans)
- National Register of Historic Places | West 67th Street Artists’ Colony Historic District designation report
- Architizer listing
- Emporis database
- Luxury Apartment Houses of Manhattan: An Illustrated History (Dover Architecture)
