Celebrity architect Charles Gwathmey didn't make himself many East Village friends with his last project here, the so-called Sculpture for Living on Astor Place, which was widely derided as out of context for the neighborhood. Perhaps he's learned his lesson. We got an early peek at Soho Mews, his newest local effort, and it's a tasteful, intriguing new condo that's a clever update of Soho's cast-iron factory tradition. The façade uses different treatments of glass, frosted here and unvarnished there, to create what Gwathmey describes as an "active Tartan grid" that will glow with different colors at different times of day. And the block-through lot, with a courtyard between the West Broadway and Wooster Street entrances, allows a sumptuous lobby that recalls the classic uptown prewars. "It's a courtyard model that is unique in the city and patterned on the great old hotels," the architect told us. "This is a loft tailored for a design-savvy customer." And one who likes his Soho to look like, well, Soho. —Alec Appelbaum