“New Yorkers may be burnt out on glass buildings,” architect James Carpenter said in a recent New York Times article. With over more than 30 years as a glass artist, he is now more focused on using the material not as mere enclosure, but as a tool for manipulating light.

The debate still rages on whether masses of glass are the best way to live in a city like New York where privacy issues are a much greater concern than in the suburbs. With large masses of glass come issues such as energy efficiency, privacy and furniture/art placement.

“I think the future holds a compromise between large expanses of glass mixed with equally large spaces of wall space,” says Leonard Steinberg head of the LUXURYLOFT team and a managing director of Prudential Douglas Elliman. ” We have repeatedly heard from owners of all-glass apartments that placing furniture and art becomes highly restrictive, not to mention the challenges of heating and cooling.” The concept of living with large expanses of glass in a city like New York that experiences long, dark winters has become more popular with city dwellers craving light.

Luxury real estate buyers seek light as a primary concern, but privacy is an equal concern. The super-creative window treatments used at 100 Eleventh Avenue designed by Jean Nouvel are a perfect example of how an architect considered the vast expanses of glass and how it would affect day-to-day life. “In the future we would expect new buildings with masses of glass to deliver screening and privacy mechanisms along with the glass windows.”