The Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) is wrapped in a striking façade of Portuguese marble. What makes it remarkable beyond the architecture is how it was made: the entire façade was planned digitally before installation, with every slab scanned, under both direct and backlight, so the interplay of light and texture could be composed in advance rather than discovered on site.
Scanning as the foundation
Stonify was part of the team behind the scanning process for the project. Capturing each slab precisely, including how it reads under backlight, is what let the design be planned with confidence: the right stone in the right place, decided from data rather than guesswork. It is the same principle behind everything we build, that a digitized slab is a slab you can plan with.
Portuguese stone in the world
The project was the subject of an "About Portuguese Stone" event with ASSIMAGRA, including a guided tour with the building's architect. Seeing Portuguese marble carry a landmark cultural building in New York, and knowing digital capture helped get it there, is a reminder of what this material and this industry can do when tradition and technology work together.