Notes on New York, My Old Neighborhood, and the G-Word
08.23.2016
Some observations about returning to Yorkville after five years away.
Some observations about returning to Yorkville after five years away.
history
10 Lessons Learned by Rereading Jane Jacobs
08.08.2016
Last week I was in the middle of packing and came across a well thumbed copy of The Death and Life of Great American Cities.
Last week I was in the middle of packing and came across a well thumbed copy of The Death and Life of Great American Cities.
Donald Trump as Architecture’s Nightmare Client
08.02.2016
Not since Thomas Jefferson has there been a presidential candidate more involved in designing and building structures than the Republican nominee.
Not since Thomas Jefferson has there been a presidential candidate more involved in designing and building structures than the Republican nominee.
Witold Rybczynski’s New Cultural History of the Chair
07.27.2016
In his new book, the author Witold Rybczynski has pulled off a deft trick. Now I Sit Me Down, due out next month, feels loose and relaxed, as well as grounded and authoritative. In a way, it’s like a good chair. The book, a sweeping look, rendered in concise breezy prose, blends first person accounts […]
In his new book, the author Witold Rybczynski has pulled off a deft trick. Now I Sit Me Down, due out next month, feels loose and relaxed, as well as grounded and authoritative. In a way, it’s like a good chair. The book, a sweeping look, rendered in concise breezy prose, blends first person accounts […]
Michael Kimmelman on the Challenges – and Opportunities – Facing New York
07.20.2016
The architecture critic of the New York Times on tall buildings, the gentrification of his old neighborhood, and the need for a 21st century Penn Station.
The architecture critic of the New York Times on tall buildings, the gentrification of his old neighborhood, and the need for a 21st century Penn Station.
Modern Restoration and the Veneration of Its Hero Architects
07.20.2016
This is not renovation: it’s work of religious purification and fine arts conservation.
This is not renovation: it’s work of religious purification and fine arts conservation.
How Brandcentric Architecture is Destroying Our Sense of Place
07.13.2016
National chains have brought a mix of outcomes in terms of job creation, quality of life, and national identity, but what are the consequences to our built environment?
National chains have brought a mix of outcomes in terms of job creation, quality of life, and national identity, but what are the consequences to our built environment?
The Pleasures and Futility of Teaching Drawing to Architecture Students
07.05.2016
Sometimes it feels like I spend as much time advocating for its usefulness as I do teaching it.
Sometimes it feels like I spend as much time advocating for its usefulness as I do teaching it.
When Intellectual Diversity Mattered
06.21.2016
Cornell’s architecture school in the 1970s wasn’t a particularly diverse place, but it was open to different ideas about the profession.
Cornell’s architecture school in the 1970s wasn’t a particularly diverse place, but it was open to different ideas about the profession.
Why Was Rem Koolhaas’ AIA Speech Not Widely Covered?
06.09.2016
There was a time, not too long ago, when a Koolhaas speech given to thousands of his fellow architects would constitute news. At least in the architecture press. Apparently, that time is not now.
There was a time, not too long ago, when a Koolhaas speech given to thousands of his fellow architects would constitute news. At least in the architecture press. Apparently, that time is not now.
Calling For An End to Architecture’s Style Wars
05.31.2016
“Architecture has a serious problem today in that people who are not alike don’t communicate,” Rem Koolhaas said, ‘I’m actually more interested in communicating with people I disagree with than people I agree with.”
“Architecture has a serious problem today in that people who are not alike don’t communicate,” Rem Koolhaas said, ‘I’m actually more interested in communicating with people I disagree with than people I agree with.”
Will Architecture Have Its Donald Trump Moment?
05.09.2016
There are two architectures. Not officially, yet, but the perception is real and growing that there is an architectural apartheid. There is an “inside” and an “outside.”
There are two architectures. Not officially, yet, but the perception is real and growing that there is an architectural apartheid. There is an “inside” and an “outside.”
Sprinting to the Past
03.14.2016
Why the call to replicate the old Penn Station is an idea born of fear.
Why the call to replicate the old Penn Station is an idea born of fear.
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