Harlem is on my mind again these days as I am about half-way into Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Shuffle. A heist on the iconic Hotel Theresa is at the heart of it. Almost exactly ten years ago to the day, I put up a post on this blog recounting some of the building’s history. One aspect I wrote about–the Cuban delegation’s visit to New York in 1960–is beautifully laid out in Simon Hall’s Ten Days in Harlem, which I recommend to everyone. It’s amazing how such an important event in world history played out in this very building up the road from where we lived for a year between 2013-14. Continue reading
Category Archives: New York
New York in July
We just got back from a short weekend trip to New York and I wanted to jot down some notes from the things we did and saw in the sweltering heat. With this, I hope to return to blogging a little bit more regularly.
Model of Clorindo Testa’s Banco de Londres in Buenos Aires
The middle finger
Since I first blogged about the rise of the super slender skyscrapers in New York, 432 Park Avenue has been growing into the sky. The inequality argument has picked up, and some have likened the building to one giant middle finger the super rich are showing to New Yorkers.
WTC and NYC’s soul
The Guardian’s Jason Farago has written a beautiful long-form piece about Ground Zero thirteen years after the terrorist attack of 9/11. The struggle to rebuild this part of town is emblematic of the New York of the 21st century.
Model of WTC site as seen in Skyscraper Museum
Lincoln Correctional Facility
This building caught my attention when having friends over and going to the adjacent playground in Central Park. The roof is fenced off and the windows are boarded up. What could be a prime piece of real estate is instead the “Prison on the Park”.
Good-bye New York, hello summer
As I write this, we are already back at the airport, waiting to board our plane to Europe. What follows is a brief summary of what I was up to in New York over the past nine months, helping me explain to myself where the time has gone!
Two great comments
I don’t get all too many comments on this blog, so it’s all the more relevant to share two recent ones with my readers. “Lamb” commented on the NOA Building, a post from my Tokyo times. More recently came Michelle’s comment on the post I wrote about the Schomburg Plaza in Harlem.
Schomburg Plaza, New York
1964 New York World’s Fair
Fifty years ago, the 1964/1965 World’s Fair in New York opened its gates. The event marked the final culmination of Robert Moses’s long career. The event wasn’t sanctioned by the Bureau of International Exhibitions and thus lacked the international allure of other Expos. I visited the area on Tuesday.
The New York State Pavilion
375 Pearl Street
It’s one of these buildings that everyone has seen but hardly anyone remembers. If, then for its seeming ugliness and prime location next to the Brooklyn Bridge. 375 Pearl Street, or the Verizon Building as it’s also known, does not have the best reputation.
Sky High
Super-slender residential skyscrapers are taking to the skies south of Central Park. They are an increasingly brazen display of economic inequalities and a seizing of one of the world’s most distinctive skylines by the super-rich.
Midtown zoning plans on display at the Skyscraper Museum, New York