Kohn Pedersen Fox — universally referenced as KPF — is the New York-based international architecture firm founded in 1976 by A. Eugene Kohn (1930–2023), William Pedersen (b. 1938), and Sheldon Fox (1930–2006). AIA Firm of the Year 1990, with approximately 700 staff across offices on three continents and a substantial portfolio of supertall office, mixed-use, and selectively residential commissions. NYC works include One Vanderbilt (2020), 30 Hudson Yards (2019), 55 Hudson Yards (2019), 1 Manhattan West (2019), and the firm's principal NYC residential commission at Madison Square Park Tower / 45 East 22nd Street (2017).
The New York-based international architecture firm founded in 1976 by A. Eugene Kohn, William Pedersen, and Sheldon Fox — one of the most-prolific contemporary international architectural practices, with a substantial portfolio of supertall office, mixed-use, and (selectively) residential commissions across the United States, Asia, and Europe. The firm's principal Manhattan residential commission, Madison Square Park Tower at 45 East 22nd Street, was completed in 2017.
At a glance
| Founded | 1976 |
| Founders | A. Eugene Kohn (1930–2023); William Pedersen (b. 1938); Sheldon Fox (1930–2006) |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| International offices | London, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Berlin |
| Staff | Approximately 700 globally |
| AIA Firm Award | 1990 (Firm of the Year) |
| Major NYC residential work | Madison Square Park Tower at 45 East 22nd Street (2017); One Jackson Square (2009) |
| Major NYC commercial | One Vanderbilt (2020); 30 Hudson Yards (2019); 55 Hudson Yards (2019); 1 Manhattan West (2019); Hudson Yards platform substantial collaboration |
Why Kohn Pedersen Fox matters
Kohn Pedersen Fox — universally referenced as KPF — is the New York-based international architectural practice whose substantive commercial-and-supertall portfolio across approximately fifty years has anchored the firm as one of the most-prolific and consequential contemporary architectural practices operating globally. Founded in 1976 in New York by A. Eugene Kohn, William Pedersen, and Sheldon Fox — three architects who had previously worked together at the substantial New York commercial-architectural practice John Carl Warnecke and Associates — the firm has developed across approximately fifty years into a substantial international architectural practice with substantial offices on three continents and a substantial completed portfolio spanning the commercial-office, supertall, mixed-use, residential, cultural, and infrastructure project typologies.
The firm's distinction within the contemporary architectural profession is substantial in scale and prolific in production. KPF is among a small number of firms whose substantial commercial-architectural portfolio operates substantively across the major international supertall and commercial markets — the substantial Manhattan supertall commercial inventory (One Vanderbilt, 30 Hudson Yards, 55 Hudson Yards, 1 Manhattan West), the substantial Asian supertall portfolio (Shanghai World Financial Center, Lotte World Tower Seoul, International Commerce Centre Hong Kong), the substantial European and Middle Eastern commercial portfolio. The firm's residential portfolio is substantively smaller in scale relative to the substantial commercial portfolio, with the substantial Madison Square Park Tower at 45 East 22nd Street representing the firm's principal contemporary Manhattan residential commission.
For Manhattan residential buyers evaluating the firm's NYC residential commission — Madison Square Park Tower — the architectural attribution is a substantive component of the building's structural premium. The substantial KPF commercial-and-supertall reputation, the substantial NYC presence across the contemporary commercial inventory, and the specific architectural character of the residential commission together produce a residential context that distinguishes the building within the contemporary Manhattan luxury residential market.
Founding and architectural philosophy
A. Eugene Kohn, William Pedersen, and Sheldon Fox founded what would become Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates in New York in 1976, with the substantial founding thesis of producing substantive commercial architectural practice substantively differentiated from the substantial modernist-corporate vocabulary that had dominated American commercial-architectural production through the substantial postwar period. The firm's early commissions through the late 1970s and early 1980s — substantively commercial buildings in Chicago, New York, and other substantial American urban centers — anchored the firm's substantive early reputation within the substantial commercial-architectural market.
The firm's substantive transition to substantial international supertall practice through the 1980s and 1990s — anchored by substantial Asian commissions including the substantial supertall buildings in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and other major Asian commercial centers — established the firm's substantial international position. The substantial subsequent expansion through the 2000s and 2010s — including the substantial Hudson Yards platform collaboration and the substantial completed Manhattan supertall portfolio — anchored the firm's substantive contemporary New York and international position.
The firm's architectural philosophy, articulated by the founding partners and the firm's continuing leadership across its history, emphasizes several recurring themes. The first is a substantive engagement with substantial commercial-architectural design — the firm's substantial commercial portfolio operates substantively at the upper register of the substantial international commercial-architectural production, with substantial substantive engineering and substantive material craft anchoring the firm's substantial reputation. The second is a substantive engagement with the substantial urban-design and substantive contextual integration that the firm's substantial larger commissions routinely require — the firm's substantial Hudson Yards platform collaboration, the substantial One Vanderbilt commission, and the substantial international supertall portfolio have all required substantial substantive engagement with the substantial surrounding urban infrastructure. The third is a substantive engagement with substantive structural-and-engineering innovation — the firm's substantial supertall portfolio has consistently required substantive substantial structural-engineering practice that has anchored the firm's substantial supertall position.
A. Eugene Kohn died in 2023; Sheldon Fox died in 2006. William Pedersen continues as a substantial design principal at the firm, with the firm operating under the substantial continuing leadership of substantial subsequent partners across the firm's substantial international offices.
Major works: international portfolio
The firm's international practice across approximately fifty years includes a substantial portfolio of completed work. The works listed below represent the firm's most-recognized commissions; the full body of work substantially exceeds this list.
NYC commercial and supertall
One Vanderbilt (New York, 2020). The firm's substantial 93-story commercial supertall at Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street, adjacent to Grand Central Terminal — at completion, the tallest commercial office tower in Midtown Manhattan. The substantial substantive engineering, the substantial transit-integration infrastructure (the building's substantial transit-hall integration with Grand Central Terminal), and the substantial commercial office program anchored the building's substantial role within the contemporary Midtown commercial market.
30 Hudson Yards (New York, 2019). The substantial 73-story commercial supertall at the Hudson Yards platform — anchoring substantial commercial program across the substantial Hudson Yards platform's principal northern commercial tower.
55 Hudson Yards (New York, 2019). The substantial 51-story commercial tower at the eastern edge of the Hudson Yards platform.
1 Manhattan West (New York, 2019). The substantial 67-story commercial tower at the Manhattan West development immediately west of Penn Station — anchoring substantial commercial program across the substantial Manhattan West platform.
1271 Avenue of the Americas (New York, 2019). The firm's substantial Time-Life Building (the substantial mid-century commercial tower at Rockefeller Center) substantial renovation completed in 2019.
NYC residential
Madison Square Park Tower at 45 East 22nd Street (New York, 2017). The firm's principal contemporary Manhattan residential commission — covered in detail in the dedicated building guide.
One Jackson Square (New York, 2009). The firm's earlier substantial Manhattan residential commission — a substantial boutique condominium project at the corner of Greenwich Avenue and Eighth Avenue in the West Village.
International supertall
Shanghai World Financial Center (Shanghai, 2008). The firm's substantial 101-story supertall in Shanghai — at completion, one of the tallest buildings in the world. The substantial trapezoidal aperture at the building's substantial pinnacle gave the building its colloquial "bottle opener" designation.
International Commerce Centre (Hong Kong, 2010). The firm's substantial 118-story supertall in Hong Kong's West Kowloon district — the tallest building in Hong Kong.
Lotte World Tower (Seoul, 2016). The firm's substantial 123-story, 1,819-foot supertall in Seoul — at completion, the fifth-tallest building in the world.
Princess Tower (Dubai, 2012). The substantial 101-story residential supertall in Dubai.
Roppongi Hills Mori Tower (Tokyo, 2003). The firm's substantial Tokyo commercial commission.
Other principal commissions
The firm's broader international portfolio includes substantial work across the commercial, mixed-use, cultural, civic, and infrastructure project typologies on five continents, with continuing project development across the firm's substantial international commission pipeline.
The firm's NYC portfolio
KPF's New York City portfolio is substantively concentrated in the substantial commercial-and-supertall portfolio noted above (One Vanderbilt, 30 Hudson Yards, 55 Hudson Yards, 1 Manhattan West, 1271 Avenue of the Americas, and the broader Hudson Yards collaboration) plus the substantial residential commissions (Madison Square Park Tower, One Jackson Square).
The firm's New York office, as the firm's headquarters since 1976, anchors substantially all of the firm's principal design direction and substantial commission development.
Considering a KPF-designed building?
The Roebling Team at Compass works the Manhattan trophy-tier new-development inventory as a structural element of our luxury practice. We publish this firm profile because Manhattan residential buyers and sellers deserve substantive intelligence about the firms whose work has shaped the contemporary inventory.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at Madison Square Park Tower or any of the broader contemporary new-development inventory anchored in significant contemporary architectural practice, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point.
Corey Cohen, Principal The Roebling Team at Compass
646.939.7375 · c.cohen@compass.com
Run the numbers
Related buildings
- Madison Square Park Tower at 45 East 22nd Street — the firm's principal contemporary Manhattan residential commission
Related guides
- New Development in Manhattan: The 2016–2026 Research Guide — the broader context for the period's inventory
- Co-op vs Condo in Manhattan — the ownership-structure framing for new-development purchases
- Foreign-Buyer Guide — relevant for the international buyer demographic
This page reflects publicly available information on Kohn Pedersen Fox's practice, the architectural press coverage of the firm's major commissions across its history, the firm's published portfolio, and The Roebling Team transaction experience with the firm's NYC residential inventory. The Roebling Team at Compass does not represent KPF or the firm's institutional or residential commissioning clients. Specific project attributions, completion years, and current operational details should be confirmed independently. © 2026 The Roebling Team at Compass.
Buildings designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)
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