488 Madison Avenue

488 Madison Avenue
Alternative names	Look Building
General information
Type	Office
Architectural style	International Style
Location	Manhattan, New York
Coordinates	40°45′32″N 73°58′31″W / 40.75889°N 73.97528°W / 40.75889; -73.97528 (Look Building)
Named for	Look magazine
Construction started	November 1948
Topped-out	August 1949
Opened	Early 1950
Owner	The Feil Organization
Height	304 ft (93 m)
Technical details
Floor count	25
Design and construction
Architecture firm	Emery Roth & Sons
Main contractor	Uris Brothers
Look Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New York State Register of Historic Places
New York City Landmark No. 2376
Location	488 Madison Ave., New York, New York
Coordinates	40°45′32″N 73°58′31″W / 40.75889°N 73.97528°W / 40.75889; -73.97528 (Look Building)
Area	less than one acre
Built	1950 (1950)
Architect	Emery Roth & Sons
Architectural style	International Style
NRHP reference No.	05000087[1]
NYSRHP No.	06101.015024
NYCL No.	2376
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	February 24, 2005
Designated NYSRHP	December 18, 2004[2]
Designated NYCL	July 27, 2010

488 Madison Avenue, also known as the Look Building, is a 25-story office building in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It is along Madison Avenue's western sidewalk between 51st and 52nd Streets, near St. Patrick's Cathedral. 488 Madison Avenue was designed by Emery Roth & Sons in the International Style, and it was constructed and developed by Uris Brothers. The building was originally named for its primary tenant, the American magazine Look.

The building largely contains a facade of white brick, interspersed with horizontal strips of aluminum windows. The lowest two stories contain a main entrance on Madison Avenue as well as several glass-and-metal storefronts. The three sides are connected by curved walls. The exterior includes several setbacks to comply with the 1916 Zoning Resolution. Each of the building's stories contain an average floor area of 19,500 square feet (1,810 m²), a feature intended to maximize usable office space.

488 Madison Avenue was constructed from 1948 to 1950 as a speculative real estate development, without a main tenant. By late 1949, the building was completely leased, and it was named after Look magazine, which had signed a lease for several floors. 488 Madison Avenue remained the headquarters of Look until the magazine stopped publishing in 1971, although it continued to be known as the Look Building for several years. The building has been owned by John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and The Feil Organization since the 1970s. The Look Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated it as an official landmark in 2010.