Located in the heart of New York City, the Mies van der Rohe-designed Seagram Building epitomizes the principles of elegance and modernism. The 38-story building on Pike Avenue is Mies' first attempt at a high-rise office building.Mies' solution set a standard for the modern skyscraper. The building became a monumental continuity of bronze and dark glass climbing up 515 feet to the top of the tower, juxtaposing the large granite surface of the plaza below.

Mies' response to the city with the Seagram Building was the grand gesture of setting back the building 100 feet from the street edge, which created a highly active open plaza. The plaza attracts users with its two large fountains surrounded by generous outdoor seating. By making this move, Mies distanced himself from New York urban morphology, lot line development, and the conventional economics of skyscraper construction.