On the eve of the completion of Raimund Abraham's winning design (of 226 entries) for the Austrian Cultural Institute New York (ACI) on 52nd Street in Manhattan we present his design and the second, third and fourth place finalists from the 1992 open competition. Architect's and jury's comments are included for each design.

Raimund Abraham: The lateral compression of the site defines the latency of its vertical thrust. Three elementary towers: The Vertebra / Stair Tower, The Core / Structural Tower, The Mask / Glass Tower. Signifying the counterforces of gravity: The Vertebra - Ascension, The Core - Support, The Mask - Suspension. The entire tower rests on the cavity of its public spaces.

Jury: The jury found this scheme to possess a strong formal resolution and to convey at the same time a powerful sense of institutional form. The rich articulation of the inclined infill mass was considered to be both innovative and compelling, particularly in relation to the adjacent set-back facades and the scale of the street. The placement of the vertical circulation to the rear of the site was felt to be felicitous since it enabled the full width of a narrow frontage to be utilized. It was noted that the louvered "mask" facade would require careful detailing and...the balconies on the street should be more fully integrated with the usable floor space.